Halo: Friendship Evolved
by jak3combat
Summary: A lone Spartan-II wakes up on an unidentified planet with no memory of how he got there, armed only with his DMR and his Smart AI, Reznov. Will he be able to remember what happened, and possibly be able to return to the UNSC? Or will he be stuck for the rest of his life?
1. New World

**Author's Note: I've had this idea for a shitton of time, and I finally got off of my arse and wrote it. Three different times.**

**Also, for your reviews; you're free to direct them at the main characters whom I list at the end of this chapter!**

'Where am I?' I thought, sitting up with a groan and taking in my surroundings. I was in a crater, dirt covering my rust and maroon colored armor, my Scout variant helmet was lying nearby (which I quickly put back on). Looking around some more, I found out that I was in what looked like a forest, and my DMR was lying a few feet away from the newly created crater. After a moment, I found two unprimed plasma grenades on my belt, along with my trauma kit.

"Hey, Reznov, you there?" I hesitantly called out, hoping that the AI that usually inhabited my suit with me was still in there.

**"...I read you. Sorry, but I was taking in the surroundings alongside you."** Reznov said after a moment, causing me to sigh in relief.

"Good to know I'm not entirely alone here... Where in the hell are we, anyway?" I said, getting to my feet with a small grunt before collecting my DMR and looking it over. The ammo counter on it said that the magazine was full, and I found three more magazines lying near me.

_'At least I have my combat knife, too. If all else fails, I'm going down with a punch.'_ I thought.

**"I'm afraid I don't know. From our surroundings, I have to go with a planet similar to what Reach was like before the Covenant glassed it."** Reznov replied, and I could just hear the frown in his voice.

"Well... Shit. Let's hope for the best and that this isn't a Covenant planet. With my luck, that's not going to happen..." I muttered, before checking over my armor more carefully, looking for any signs of tampering or damage.

_'Seems that we're just in a new location. Shit, what I would give for some intel, even if it's shifty...'_ I thought once I finished, cracking my neck and walking out of the small clearing, intending on getting some knowledge on this planet.

**[Several Hours Later]**

"What do you think my odds are, Reznov?" I muttered, staring at the pack of wooden wolves that were surrounding me at the moment, my DMR pointing at one's face.

**"In my opinion, you should use your knife and fists, because they won't miss. And, if it weren't for your armor, I would think that they could take you down, Spartan-II or not."** Reznov answered, hesitating for a moment for the last part.

"I don't blame you..." I replied, magnetically attaching my rifle to my back and drawing my knife with my left hand, balling my right hand into a fist. One of the bastards from behind got cocky and decided to pounce at me while I was muttering, expecting an easy kill. The thing appeared on my motion tracker, and at the last second I whirled around and sunk my knife in to the hilt, the tip poking out of the back of its throat while I also had my lower arm in its maw. Thankfully, it didn't damage my Tacpad.

**"There's movement in the trees."** Reznov told me as I withdrew my arm and knife in time to punch another wolf in the face. It crumpled to the ground with a whine, dazed but not dead.

"What're the numbers?" I asked, crouching and slicing the underbelly of one of them as they kept coming at me, before kicking another in the face with both feet, using my hands as balance.

**"One, and it looks to be a quadruped. Can't really figure out the species without a glimpse, but from the way it walks alone, it's not Covenant. Don't attack it unless it's proven hostile."** Reznov said, causing me to frown.

_'Quadruped, huh? Half chance that it's sentient, half chance it's just an animal. Same deal as when I'm on any new planet.'_ I thought, snapping the neck of one of the remaining wolves and throwing the body at another, sending them crashing into a tree. Before it could get up, I drew my DMR and shot it right in the head, getting sap, bark, teeth, and wood flying.

"I know you're out there." I said, magnetically putting my DMR on my back and returning my knife to it's sheath.

**[?'s POV]**

I was coming back from Zecora's hut when I heard the sounds of fighting in the distance. Being the curious filly that I was, I naturally crept towards it to investigate. What I found was scary; there was this large creature covered in what looked like armor, sporting a large knife and seemed to be talking to itself, and fighting a pack of Timberwolves. And it was winning.

_'It's scary... But at the same time it's cool...'_ I couldn't help but think, watching as it nimbly, and (in some cases) literally tear the Timberwolves to shreds. When there was only one left, struggling to get up, it pulled what looked like a very weird crossbow off of it's back and a deafening crack echoed as the head of the Timberwolf exploded. I had to readjust my saddlebags a little, as I jumped when the head exploded.

"I know you're out there." It said suddenly, causing me to jump a little in surprise. As I whimpered, it placed its weapons back on its body, and looked directly at me. "I just want a look at you." It said after a moment, sitting down on it's flank and continuing to stare at the bush I was behind.

"P-Please don't hurt me..." I whimpered as I slowly came out from behind the bush, shivering quite a lot. In response, the creature tilted its head slightly to the left, and muttered something.

_'Can it not understand me? I overheard it speak perfect Equestrian just a moment ago!'_ I thought, confused. After a moment, it grabbed it's head and started to take it off, making me realize that it was wearing a helmet. Underneath the helmet was what looked like a monkey without fur, with white skin and a small, black mane on the top of its head.

"Hey there. Could you tell me your name?" He (I figured, anyway) slowly asked, one of his eyebrows raising.

"I-It's Sand Dune..." I hesitantly said, and he stuck out his left forearm rather suddenly, causing me to shrink back.

"What's wrong? It's just... Oh, the fight from before." He looked confused, before facepawing and shaking his head. "Sorry you had to see that. My name's Mark M-078."

"What's with the numbers?" I slowly asked, hoping to not offend him.

"It's sort of an identification thing. You can just call me Mark." He offered, smiling a little.

"Alright... What are you?" I asked, sitting on my flank and looking at him in curiosity.

"I'm what's called a Spartan-II, part of a species called _homo sapiens_, or humans, but with a few classified enhancements." He replied, confusing me.

"Humans are supposed to be myths!" I said, surprised.

_'I'm talking to a living, breathing myth!'_ I thought with glee.

"Well, I could say the same about unicorns." He replied, causing me to look confused.

"You don't have unicorns where you're from? What about pegasi or earth ponies?" I asked.

"Pegasi are myths too, but I've never heard of an earth pony. Are they like you, just without the horn?" He asked.

"Yep! They're great at understanding the earth, while pegasi are good at controlling the weather and we unicorns are great at magic!" I said, bouncing a little. He facepawed again, causing me to become confused again. "What?"

"It's... Nothing." He said, before muttering something that I was barely able to catch. "New planet, new rules..."

"You don't have magic where you're from, don't you?" I asked, frowning a little.

"That, and the fact that in our myths, pegasi cannot control the weather." He replied, causing me to gasp.

"You just let the weather go around unchecked?!" That seemed very dangerous, and unbelievable.

"We've done our best to control it, believe me." He replied, chuckling a little before standing up and grabbing his helmet. "Why don't you show me to your place? I'm a little lost right now." He requested.

"Well... Alright. I guess my dad won't be _too_ mad at me if I bring you..." I slowly said, before trotting off past him. After a second of muttering, he followed me.

**Author's Note: Red Dawn is in this too, but he's a pegasus, not an Alicorn. Also, list of characters you can direct reviews to;**

**Mark**  
**Reznov**  
**Red Dawn (Chapter 2 and onward, please)**  
**Sand Dune**


	2. The Town

**Reviews:**

**shadow55530: I certainly hope so!**

**LexiconHuka: Wait, what?**

**[Mark's POV, which will be reigning supreme for a few chapters]**

There's been a few times in my life where I've been dumbfounded. Being kidnapped. My first Covenant kill (Which happened to be an Elite of all things). And now appearing on an unknown world, not just by being led by a mythological creature that barely reached my knees, but also learning that I was a myth to said myth.

**"I've browsed all known databanks for mentions of unicorns, pegasi, and 'earth ponies'."** Reznov told me after I put my helmet back on, feeling uncomfortable without it.

"And?" I quietly asked, hoping to not alert the unicorn, Sand Dune, in front of me.

**"You were right before. Unicorns cannot use magic, the myths about the Pegasus don't mention anything about weather manipulation, and from what she, by the way, told us about these earth ponies, they're ordinary Earth creatures which are called horses."** Reznov explained, causing me to nod a little.

"I don't recall much about my time on Earth, seeing as I was taken when I was seven." I replied. Sand Dune looked at me, confused, but I waved her on. No need to take her pity on my kidnapping, as I don't really think about it too much anymore.

**"True enough. From the size difference though, I believe that they're not horses, but ponies. Similar body structure and the like, except for-"** He began.

"-Facial features similar to a human, ability to talk, and complex thoughts." I finished, smiling a little as cutting off Reznov always got him a little peeved. Not really smart to piss of the smart AI that lives in your suit, but he takes it with stride and throws it back at me.

**"Pretty much. Mind asking the little filly about their myths of us?"** He asked, causing me to collect a blunt stick and gently poke her with it. Didn't feel like talking more than I really needed to at the moment.

"Yes?" She asked, looking back at me (Which shouldn't be possible, now that I'm remembering vauge memories of horses.) with a raised eyebrow. I casually tossed the stick behind me before speaking.

"Mind telling me about your myths about us? I could tell you what's true and what's not." I asked, causing her to flinch a little.

"Um, are you sure? They don't exactly paint humans in the best of lights..." She hesitantly asked.

"I can take it." I replied, shrugging. She sighed and thought for a moment, before opening her mouth.

**[About twenty minutes later]**

"Alright; we don't slaughter for fun, we're not covered in fur, we're not mindless, we don't kidnap foals and take them away for food, and we certainly don't burn down villages for fun." I said once she said two or three stories, causing her to sheepishly grin.

"Yea... I don't really believe in them anyway. You're lucky you didn't run across one of the flower sisters first; or else the guard might be coming after you." Dune finally said.

"Flower sisters?" I asked, raising an eyebrow, not that she saw it.

"Three mares that provide a lot of flowerwork around Ponyville. They're pretty much afraid of everything." She said with a little giggle.

"And you aren't?" I asked, smiling a little.

"There's not a lot that can frighten me, actually. I'm mostly afraid of Timberwolves, Manticores, and Hydras, all of which live in here." She confessed.

**"They have a lot of mythological beings here, which I'm not even questioning at this point. It's irritating, sure, but from what Dune's been telling you, myths are commonplace here and vice versa."** Reznov muttered, and I could _feel_ the defeat in his voice.

"And exactly why were you in there?" I asked, looking at my motion tracker out of reflex.

"I had to get some herbal tea from Zecora, a zebra that lives by herself here." She replied with a nod towards her saddlebags.

"Fair enough. What's the mark on your flank?" I asked, pointing a little to the left of her ass.

"This? It's called a Cutie Mark. I take it humans don't get them?" She replied, looking a little confused.

"Yea. So, how do you get a Cutie Mark?" I asked.

_'God, that even sounded gay in my head.'_ I couldn't help but think, resisting the urge to facepalm.

"You're lucky you didn't say that to the Cutie Mark Crusaders, they would probably force one onto you. Anyway, a filly or colt gets their Cutie Mark when they discover their special talent. I got mine when I accidentally blew up my dad's fireworks stand a couple years ago. He was angry and grounded me, but I didn't care." She explained, indicating the fact that it had a pair of old fireworks and a comical explosion surrounding them.

"How old are you?" I asked.

"I'm ten. And you?" She asked.

"Twenty three." I answered, pausing when we reached the edge of the forest. About a hundred yards to our left, there was a giant bush that had windows of all things. "What's that?" I asked, pointing over to it.

"That's Fluttershy's cottage! She's really timid, so I don't think it'll be a good idea for you to meet her quite yet." Dune replied, before facehoofing.

"What is it?" I asked, tilting my head a little.

"I completely forgot about you being a human... Do you think you can stay here until nightfall?" She asked.

"I have two armor abilities that could help." I said. "I hope... Reznov?" I added after a moment, muttering to him.

**"You still have both of them in, so don't worry."** Reznov replied, causing me to smile. **(Author's Note: Yea, I know. Two armor abilities, but meh. Mark has altered his armor to have two of them. Most people never use these two in fanfictions anyway, so I felt like giving them some love.)**

"Armor abilities?" She asked as we continued onward.

"They give me special abilities that I normally can't do. Some drop down bubble shields, while others put the armor in a state of lock, keeping the user invulnerable for a small amount of time." I replied. "You'll see one of the ones I have soon enough."

"Alright..." She finally muttered, and we continued on our way.

**[Edge of Ponyville]**

"So, what's the plan?" She asked, looking up at me as I crouched behind a house, doing my best to act unintimidating. It wasn't working, as Dune was looking at me uneasily.

"This." I said, before activating my Active Camouflage, slowly 'disappearing' from sight.

"You can turn invisible?!" She hissed, looking around wildly.

"Technically, I'm not. I'm merely using my armor's ability to bend light away from me, making it look like I'm not there. The faster I move, the easier it is to spot me." I answered, causing her to let out a squeak and whirl around. "I'm in front of you." I said with a gentle poke to her muzzle, earning a sheepish grin.

"Sorry about that..." She muttered, rubbing the back of her head with a hoof.

**"Fuck it. It's not possible, but she's doing shit that horses can't do!"** Reznov was pissed, and I knew that I would start getting a headache sooner or later.

"We need to get moving. This isn't going to last forever, even with the enhancement that I had put into it." I said, patting her back gently. She nodded and led me through the village, and quietly told me who the other ponies were when nobody was paying attention.

"Hey, Duny!" A cheery, bubbly voice said suddenly, causing Dune to look at a pink earth pony. And I mean pink.

"Hey, Pinkie!" She said cheerfully, smiling a little.

"Aren't you going to introduce me to your friend?" 'Pinkie' asked, pointing directly at me with a hoof. I swear to God I think my heart just stopped.

"Um, who?" She lied, looking confused.

"The armored being behind you, silly!" Pinkie cheerfully said.

**"...You're able to be seen by the pink one, yet your active camouflage is working perfectly."** Reznov muttered, and if he was real, he's probably be ripping his hair out in frustration by now.

"Pinkie, I have to tell you something..." Dune muttered, before whispering something into Pinkie's ear. After a second, she hmm'd and nodded, before bouncing off. Literally, she was bouncing on her hooves while going away. "Alright Mark, we're in the clear." Dune said after a moment, continuing on. I crouched down and followed her as quickly as I could without making myself appear.

**"You have one minute until the cloak wears off."** Reznov said, making me grit my teeth a little.

"How long until we get to your place?" I quietly asked my escort.

"About two minutes. Why?" She asked, causing me to gulp.

"What does your house look like?" I asked, and she gave me the description. "Alright, hold on. I'm going to do something risky." I said before scooping her up.

**"Are you sure about this?"** Reznov asked.

"Definitely." I muttered, and he switched off the restraints so that I could sprint at my fastest.

"Um, what are you doing?" Dune asked as I stood to my full height.

"Getting there before this cloak wears off." I replied. "Hold onto me as best as you can." I warned, gave her a second to comply, and took off like a bullet, sprinting at the speed of a Warthog. The cloak started failing, and by the time it fully collapsed, I skidded to a stop in front of a door.

"Woah!" Dune groaned, holding a hoof to her mouth as I put her down, opened the door, and crouched to get in. After Dune stumbled in, I shut the door and leaned against the wall as Reznov put the restraints back on before I break myself. Again.

"Sorry about that." I apologized to her, who shakingly nodded, grinning a little.

"Dune? Are you home?" A masculine voice from the staircase called down, causing me to tense up.

"Yes, daddy, and I brought a friend!" Dune cheerfully replied, and a red pegasus with a black mane and silver eyes came down, saw me, and rolled his eyes.

"Figures... You a changeling, or actually a human?" He asked, causing me to tilt my head in confusion.

"You're not scared?" I asked, honestly surprised. "Your myths don't paint us in the best of light."

"I've seen weirder, trust me. You want any tea?" He asked, causing me to shake my head a little.

"I'm more of a coffee guy, honestly." I said.

"Same here, but I usually go to Sugarcube Corner for it, so I can't make you any, sadly." He apologized with a smile, before getting closer to me. A lot closer. "You don't really look like the mythical humans..." I heard him mutter as he looked me over, before nodding and backing up.

**"Seems like he's checking you over for wounds, from how I saw him looking at you."** Reznov said, startling both of them. He didn't use the helmet only chat, he just spoke out loud.

"Who's there?!" Dune said, looking around.

"That's just my Smart AI, Reznov." I replied, getting confused looks.

"What's an aeye?" The pegasus asked, tilting his head slightly.

**"AI stands for Artificial Intelligence. From what Mark and I saw on the way over, you ponies aren't even close to creating normal AIs, much less Smart AIs."** Reznov said, confusing them even more.

"What's the difference between normal and Smart?" Dune asked.

**"Normal AIs do only the task that they were made for, while we Smart AIs learn. We're pretty much sentient beings, except for the whole digitized thing."** Reznov explained as I fished a display disk out of one of my pockets, taking his chip out of my suit and plugging him into it.

"This is Reznov. He's pretty much a model of the person who donated their brain to stay alive for about ten years." I said as he popped up, stretching a little. He looked like a naked human male, minus the genitals, and was glowing green.

"He looks cool!" Dune said, looking closely at him. In response, Reznov looked up at her and waved a little.

"How many ponies know your here?" The pegasus asked while Dune inspected Reznov.

"You two, and some earth pony named Pinkie. A few probably saw me as I sprinted here before my cloak wore off." I answered.

"Well, since Pinkie knows you're here, keeping you a secret is going to be a lot harder..." He muttered.

"Speaking of the pink one, how come she was able to see us while he had his camouflage active? The only way she should've seen him is if he was moving at more than a crawl." Reznov said, looking up at him.

"Pinkie is Pinkie. She does the unexpected on a regular basis, and I found her in one of my cups once."

"That's... Not possible." Reznov muttered, groaning in frustration.

"There's a lot of things that Pinkie does that isn't possible. You'll get used to it." He chuckled, before looking at me. "Where are my manners? My name's Red Dawn. It's a pleasure to meet you." He said, putting up his right hoof. I grasped it with my arm and shook it.

"So, what's the plan? It's getting to be nighttime right about now, right?" I asked, looking outside without allowing anyone that could be looking in see me.

"If you wouldn't mind, could you sleep in the basement? I think there's a spare bed down there..." Dawn asked, grinning awkwardly.

"I've slept in worse predicaments. See you in the morning." I said, before carefully going downstairs and turning away his offers for dinner. I wasn't hungry yet. I also collected Reznov and put him back into my armor.

**"Well, I guess we're stuck here for a while..."** Reznov said once I made myself as comfortable as I was going to get, causing me to sigh.

"I know, and that's what worries me. I also hope that the Covenant won't find this place. Seems too peaceful for that shit to happen." I said, putting my hands up to my helmet.

**"Don't hurt yourself in your sleep, like you did on Reach that one time."** Reznov said, and I could just hear his grin.

"Meh." With that, I was lying down and falling asleep quickly, feeling very sore all of a sudden.

**Author's Note: Review!**


	3. Second Contact

**Reviews:**

**LexiconHuka: I frequently lurk on /b/. I've seen some shit that will make Mark vomit, without batting an eyelash. And yes, I have.**

**shadow55530: HEEL!**

**Author's Note: You'll notice what I did there later in the chapter. I just finished watching Halo 4: The Movie (All cutscenes packed together in one video), and felt like doing that. Also, this is post Halo 4, by about half a year. The Covenant Loyalists haven't been fully eliminated yet, and only the strongest supporters survive.**

"So, what's the plan?" I asked, coming up from the basement the next morning.

"Well, I guess it'll be smart to let Pinkie have a very small party down there later... It would only get worse from there." Dune said from a seat, putting a hoof to her chin.

"...Alright." I finally agreed, before looking at Dawn.

"What do you want to eat?" He asked, looking over from a stove, with a pan held in his hoof.

**"Son of a fucking bitch, how many things do you see wrong here?"** Reznov groaned as I looked over the food on the table. Mostly hay, oats, and fruits.

"You have any meat?" I asked, causing both of the equines to flinch.

"Uh... No..." Dawn cautiously said, looking nervous all of a sudden.

"I'll just take an apple, then." I said with a shrug, picking one off of the table and quickly looking it over.

_'I haven't had a real apple in ages...'_ I thought before lifting my helmet up enough to where I could eat it.

And then I spit it out, being way too sweet for my taste.

_'Dammit! Too fucking sweet!'_ I thought with distaste, shuddering a little.

Somewhere, an orange mare was insulted down to her core.

"What's wrong, Mark?" Dune asked, confused. "Is there something wrong with the apple?"

"It's too sweet for me." I said, frowning a little and picking up a slice of bread. Thankfully, the bread wasn't that sweet, but I could stll taste a little bit of sweetness in it.

"You can't ingest sugar?" Dawn asked, sliding some scrambled eggs onto a plate and putting them in front of Dune.

"I'm a soldier. Sugar's hard to get on the front lines, and I've never had that much of a sweet tooth, so I've never really had it." I explained, then suddenly did a double take when I noticed the cooked eggs.

"What?" Dune asked, before noticing that my gaze was more or less focused on her plate. She smiled a little and pushed it over to me. "I'm not much of an egg person, anyway. Go ahead and have 'em."

"Do you have a fork?" I asked, kneeling because I would reduce their chairs to splinters if I sat in one. "And didn't you say you didn't have meat?" I asked Dawn, looking at him.

"We don't consider eggs to be meat. Same goes with fish." He replied with a shrug, probably pissing Reznov off even more due to actions that shouldn't be possible on an equine body.

"Here." She said, levitating one out of a drawer and into my hand.

"Thanks." I said, using it to eat the eggs. After a moment, I noticed Dune watching my hand with a look of curiosity on her face. I poked her with my free hand and continued eating. A few moments later, an odd _bwappa_ sound came from the front door, causing Dune to faceplant into the table and Dawn looked very nervous.

**"What is it?"** Reznov quietly asked Dune, while Dawn looked through some stuff in a hurry.

"It's my friend, Lyra. I forgot that she was coming over today to goof off." Dune groaned, faceplanting again.

"Well, I'm not going to be living in your basement for the rest of my life." I said before Reznov could say anything else, slipping my helmet back down. "I might as well start meeting the other locals." With that, I got to my feet and moved into the living room, sitting down in a corner and began to look over my DMR for scratches and other damage.

**"Are you sure this is a good idea, Mark?"** Reznov asked as Dune reluctantly went to answer the door.

"Not in the least." I replied, before pausing and looking at a wall.

**"What is it?"** Reznov asked.

"Reznov... How long ago did you choose me again?" I quietly asked, as two voices echoed towards us.

**"Six years..."** He said, a little hesitant.

"We got about a year to get off of this planet before you start deteriorating then." I said with more than a little relief lacing my voice. "I still remember how John was after he lost Cortana. I don't want the same thing to happen with you."

John-117. Master Chief. Demon. A few of the names my fellow Spartan-II went by, but I could count how many beings could call him by his name on one hand. I was one of them, having practically grown up with the man. Destroyed two Halos with him, but I wasn't on the half of the _Forward Unto Dawn_ he was when we went through Slip Space, having been on the Bridge with the Arbiter.

"Woah! That's a nice sculpture you have there, Dune! You should've told me you were making one, and I could've helped you." A feminine voice exclaimed, causing me to look without moving my head. The two of them saw me sitting with my right leg drawn somewhat close to my chest, and my right arm draped across my knee.

_'It'll be good to let her think I'm not real for a while.'_ I thought, and from the look on Dune's face, she was thinking the same thing. This 'Lyra' was an aquamarine unicorn with a light blue mane that had a white streak running through the right side, and a musical instrument for a cutie mark.

**"Her ass mark looks like a lyre."** Reznov said, using the helmet only feature to talk to me. I quickly thought the same, turning off the external speakers to talk back without alarming Lyra.

"Name goes hand in hand with her, I guess. Human fetishist, or just curious?" I asked, watching as she examined my armor with a critical eye.

**"Hopefully the latter. I'd hate for you to disappoint her with your lack of a sexual drive."** Reznov said, giving off a chuckle at the end.

"Shut up." I muttered.

"Is the helmet able to come off, or is it just the armor?" Lyra asked Dune, who gulped and looked nervous. While Lyra was looking at Dune, I carefully nodded my head, just enough as to where Dune would notice.

"Uh... Y-Yea." Dune said, sweating a little.

**"Mark, you're pretty much jumping onto thin ice here. How the town looks at you depends on second contact to go well."** Reznov warned as Lyra put her hoof to my helmet. As carefully as possible, I quickly grabbed it and gently bopped her on the muzzle, surprising the hell out of her.

"EEP!" She squeaked in a very cute manner and jumped about four feet backwards, while getting out of my loose as fuck grip.

**Author's Note: Cliff motherfucking hanger. Kinda. I'm pretty sure you all know how Lyra's gonna act.**


	4. Complications

**Reviews:**

**LexiconHuka: And I wade in it hourly.**

**shadow55530: No Weegee! No Weegee!**

**dannymxyz: **  
**Mark: Pretty much. I've been known to be a dick at times, but this is tame from what I could do to her.**

**manga reader 95: Thanks! ^^**

**Nightmare daniell61: **  
**Mark: Ugh. I don't make the bitches wet, because, frankly, I don't give a fuck. (Having no sex drive helps.)**

Lyra sat there, staring at me for a good five minutes. My timer pretty much confirmed this.

**"You can be such a fucking idiot, Mark..."** Reznov groaned, and I heard him make an audio facepalm.

"Cool! You got a sculpture to move!" Lyra finally said, causing Dune's jaw to drop, and I noticed that Dawn facehoofed.

_'They don't have palms, so I guess it would be facehoof...'_ I thought, rubbing my helmet in thought.

"Uh, Lyra? He's not a sculpture..." Dune said, as I slowly waved my hand at her.

"Name's Mark M-078. _Homo Sapien_ and Spartan-II." I said, holding my hand out for a hand/hoof shake. Lyra started at my outstretched hand and started shaking.

Scratch that, she started fucking _vibrating_.

"Should I be worried?" I quietly asked Dune, who stepped next to me as Lyra stood there, vibrating in place. I also turned the speakers back on so she'd be able to hear me.

"More than likely." She whispered back, causing me to sigh and lean back.

**"Told you; you're an idiot. You could've let her think you were a sculpture, but no!"** Reznov groaned, followed by a audible thunk. Without warning, Lyra bolted out of the house and to God-knows-where.

"Where'd she just go?" I asked, slowly getting up.

**"Probably to alert the authorities."** Reznov said, not helping.

"Nah, she's gone home to go over her notes on humans." Dune said, tapping a small notebook against my leg, making me look down at her. She handed it to me and I flipped through some of it, revealing some oddly familiar creatures drawn in it.

"Lyra Heartstrings enjoys theorizing with my daughter. Mainly aliens and humans." Dawn said, causing me to become confused.

"So, she likes humans then?" I asked hesitantly.

"Yea. She's always wanted to meet one. The other ponies in Ponyville make fun of her because of it, but now that you're here..." Dawn said, trailing off at the end.

"Hope she doesn't meet the aliens we met..." I muttered, causing Dune to look up at me.

"Why's that?" She asked.

**"The only aliens that we've encountered so far are called the Covenant and you. The Covenant are a group of alien species that, until recently, were at war with humans. And we were losing."** Reznov explained as I didn't answer.

"Why are you calling us aliens?" Dawn asked.

"To put it simply, to us you are. We're on an alien world with little hope of reestablishing contact with the UNSC." I answered, getting up and popping my back. The sounds it made sounded like a Magnum firing.

**"I could show you a few of their species, if you wish."** Reznov offered right as Lyra came bounding back in, bags on her sides and a wide ass grin etched on her face. **"...Or not..."**

"What's going on?" Lyra asked, as she noticed me about to unplug Reznov and put him into my display disk. I just shrugged to myself, unplugged Reznov, and watched as he burst from the disk, startling Lyra even more. "Cool!" She exclaimed, looking closely at him, before sticking a hoof through his digital torso. It went right through.

"We're doing a short presentation on a few alien species." Dawn said as Reznov reappeared.

"Show them a Hunter. One of the few I don't like fighting." I requested, and Reznov suddenly had a life size (in scale to his body) Hunter standing next to him.

**"The Hunter is actually a colony of metal eating worms that are able to link up with each other and preform complex movements. They were the heavy armor of the Covenant, and there are only a few ways to take one down."** Reznov explained, pointing at the weak spots in the armor.

"Could you explain the Elites?" Lyra asked, causing me to sit up suddenly.

"How do you know of the Elites?" I quietly asked, fearing the worst.

"T-There's one living outside of Ponyville... He appeared several days ago..." Lyra stammered.

**"We may have a problem, Mark..."** Reznov muttered as I plugged him back into my helmet, before collecting my DMR and heading towards the door.

"Woah, where are you going?" Dune asked, scrambling after me.

"To see if that Elite won't be a threat to the town." I growled, causing her to faulter for a second.

"Well I'm coming with you!" She said, determined.

"You'll be put into danger if he's hostile." I argued, while Dawn stood next to Dune. "...You're going to come whether I say so or not."

"Pretty much." Dawn said, causing me to sigh and thump my head against the door.

"Fine. If you get hurt it's your own damn fault." I grunted, before opening the door, crouching through it, and into the morning sunlight.

It was a peaceful morning in Ponyville, where the inhabitants were on their way to and from the market, to the schoolhouse in the case of the little fillies and colts, or to the various jobs they had. Well, they would've, if it weren't for the metal behemoth that resembled one of the most feared myths standing outside Red Dawn's house.

Naturally, the first ones to panic were the flower sisters.

Without even batting an eye in their direction, I turned to Lyra.

"I need you to take me to the Elite. I can give you my word that I will not kill him if he isn't hostile, if it helps." I said to her.

"How do I know you won't go back on your word?" She asked, looking around nervously. The various redshirt ponies were running into whatever structure would hold them, save for the one I was standing outside.

**"Mark's word is pretty much a guarantee since he's a Spartan. If he knows it's within his physical limits, he'll do it."** Reznov said, causing Lyra to pause for a moment before nodding and leading me in the direction of where I came sprinting down yesterday.

**Author's Note: Shit is (maybe) gonna do down next chapter.**


	5. Elite

**Reviews:**

**LexiconHuka:**  
**Mark: I'm just glad that it's an Elite that I potentially have to kill. I'm gonna challenge him to a duel, if it comes to it.**

**JAR: Erryone's gotta have a favorite pone. Mine's AJ, TBH.**

**Gunsandgames:**  
**Mark: Luck is one thing that John has that I don't. With my luck, this Elite is a fucking scout for the Covenant Loyaltists.**

**AnalPoptarts: Dear God, no. Don't think I'd ever be able to successfully write his character.**

**the heavy:**  
**Mark: It always escalates quickly when I'm around.**

"So, Mark..." Dune said, trying to make conversation with me as I walked several paces behind Lyra.

"Yes?" I asked, glancing around while simply moving my head ever so slightly. It was a habit that I quickly picked up, and it saved my ass more than a dozen times.

"If I could find a spell... Would you be willing to turn into a pony? So you could blend in with the locals." She asked, causing me to think.

"...No. I wouldn't want to lose what little shreds of humanity I have left." I finally answered as we exited the town and started going down a path towards the forest. As we entered, I instantly put my guard up as we heard the sounds of distant fighting.

**"Mark! The weapon being used is an energy sword!"** Reznov declaired after a second, and a vicious roar sounded off. I instantly crouched down in front of the ponies, pointing my DMR towards

"What was that?" I asked, looking back at Dune.

"It's a Manticore." She replied.

"Looks like that Manticore stumbled across your Elite 'friend'." I said to Lyra, getting out of my crouch and started running.

"We need to go help him!" Lyra shouted, scrambling to get in front of me.

"That manticore's gonna be dead by the time we get there." I called out, but didn't slow down my pace. I could keep my hopes up and catch the Elite too wounded to save, after all.

"Raaagh!" The alien shouted, followed by the ponies behind me recoiling from something my helmet filtered out.

**"The Elite won. I'm keeping the smell of burnt ass-ugly cat out of your suit, but if you stick around long enough, you'll have to wash it out."** Reznov informed me, and I skidded to a stop, Lyra slamming into my thighs and going down hard.

"Ow!" She hissed, rubbing her head.

_'You're lucky you didn't break that horn off. If it went into my ass, so help me...'_ I thought, choosing to discard the silent threat and motion for them to stay the fuck there instead. As my luck progressed backwards, they didn't understand it. Well, it seems Dawn was the only one who did. He was probably a retired soldier, so props for him.

"Stay here." I sighed, before activating my Active Camouflage and creeping forward. Luckily, they stayed, even if they were hesitant on doing so.

**"That's a Spec Ops Elite, Mark."** Reznov quietly said as I stopped to observe the clearing in which the Elite fought a now carved up manticore. Looking closer, I was sure I saw several familiar markings on the armor.

"That can't be..." I muttered, taking a glance at my right arm. "That's the same fucker that cut off my arm... Same markings and missing the same mandibles that I cut off. Bastard ended up surviving the fall down that chasm." I was sure that this fucker was the same one, but I could always be wrong. As I crept forward a little, a stray twig found its way under my boot and snapped, causing the Elite to whirl towards me.

"Ah, Lyra..." He said after a moment in that buggered up version of English of the Elites. I was a little impressed, though. He spoke almost as fluently as the Arbiter does. After I realized what he said, I carefully turned around and gave Lyra the hardest glare that I could from behind a helmet and cloaked.

Needless to say, she only felt it. She did a good job of not wincing, though.

"What happened, Barthou'mus?" Lyra asked, feigning confusion and giving out a little revulsion while also giving me the name of this bastard.

"Nothing to worry about. This winged creature attacked me while I was practicing with my sword." He replied, as I decided, to Reznov (who started yelling at me), to say fuck it and stepped forward, letting my camouflage turn off.

"I remember you." I said, having my DMR put on my back, while pointing my right arm at the Elite.

"Demon." He said, looking at me with caution. I know he didn't recognize me at first glance, since my armor was a different color scheme back then.

"I have one question; how'd you survive that fall? I know my arm wouldn't have saved you." I asked, crossing my arms as he remembered.

"I fell into a pool of water at the bottom of the chasm." He answered, before taking a glance at the butt of my DMR. "Are you here to kill me, Demon?"

"A few years ago, you'd be getting shot at already." I answered, and noticed that he started to tense up. "Now though... Well, it seems that we're both stuck here. It would be a shame to kill you and end up needing your help later."

"So, you're only letting me live because you might need me?" He asked, and I could _feel_ the loath in his voice. From what I understand of the Elites, is that they absolutely despise being used. The Prophets are a good example. I couldn't help but remember what the Arbiter did to Truth on the Ark.

"Nope. You see, I was pissed off at you for taking my arm on that Halo ring, but after giving it some thought, I've come to respect you." I shook my head, while also confusing th fuck out of both Lyra and Reznov. Bet he didn't see that coming. "Hard enough to actually injure a Spartan, let alone cut off a Spartan-II's arm and living to tell the tale."

"So, where does this leave us?" Barthou'mus asked, still looking a little wary.

"At a ceasefire, I hope. Become relatively neutral towards each other?" I asked, holding out my hand for a hand (and whatever the fuck they call them) shake. A few tense moments where you could hear a mouse fart a mile away passed, before he finally nodded and shook my hand, sealing the agreement.

**Author's Note: So, this'll make one hell of a team. A Spartan-II and a Spec. Ops. Elite who took said Spartan-II's arm several years ago.**  
**Also, you can direct reviews at Barthou'mus now.**


	6. Stories

**Reviews:**

**XshadowwriterzX:**  
**Mark: Hopefully not an energy sword to my spine.**

**LexiconHuka:**  
**Mark: Hey! I still have morals! I could've just killed Barthou'mus, but I kept my trigger finger in place until I deemed the appropriate action.**

**Gunsandgames:**  
**Barthou'mus: I accept your advice with gratitude, human.**

**Nightmare daniell61:**  
**Reznov: I calculated the noise levels in the clearing at the time of when this event happened. It wouldn't have been audible from a mile away, but a few yards or so and it would be crystal clear.**

**Major Simi: Yup, and thanks.**

**jacob: why can't you what?**

**Sgt. Mufflebuns (ch5):**  
**Barthou'mus: Yes, and I lived. Also, I think I've killed a Marine that had your username...**  
**(ch4): We all have moments like that, bro.**

**Brony114 (ch2): Thanks!**  
**(ch5): Take this!**

A few moments of me and Reznov inspecting the Elite's armor, Dawn and Dune finally came into the clearing.

"So, this is an Elite..." Dawn muttered, joining me with my examination. I couldn't help but notice the subtle shifting that Barthou'mus was doing, and grinned behind my helmet at his nervousness.

"Aright, your armor'll hold." I muttered after a few more examinations.

**"What are you planning, Mark?"** Reznov asked.

"What do you mean, Demon?" Barthou'mus asked, looking at me.

"You still owe me for my arm. I figure a good punch will make us even." I answered, clenching my fingers. "To be a little fair to you, I'll use my real arm instead of the prostetic one." I added, taking a step back.

"...That is acceptable." He finally said, standing to his full height of about a few inches above me.

"What are you doing?" Lyra asked, but flinched when I suddenly drove my fist into 'mus, causing his shields to flare and break, while also causing him to slightly double over and groan. Dune and Lyra gasped in shock, while Dawn seemed interested in how hard I punched him.

"We're done here. I don't know about you, but I don't want to be out here after dark. From what Sand Dune said, there's bloody Hydras in here..." I said, shaking my hand a little and walking back the way that I came.

**"Seems rather cold of you, Mark."** Reznov commented after a moment.

"If you were still flesh and blood instead of being an AI, how would you feel if you met the bastard that cut off your arm and you could only get in a good punch?" I asked.

**"You have a point, I suppose... For some reason, our Elite friend hasn't been promoted to an Special Operations Officer for dismembering you. My guess is that he failed to stop you and John on Halo, but since he did manage to grievously injure you, he was probably let off the hook by the Prophets."** Reznov mused, as I heard four pairs of footsteps. Three for the ponies, and one for Barthou'mus.

"Seems he's smart after all..." I muttered.

**"Honestly, you could try to be nicer to him."** Reznov said.

"...You're right." I finally muttered, sighing and running my hands over my visor.

"Is something wrong, Demon?" Barthou'mus asked, his longer strides finally allowing him to catch up with me.

"I'm just thinking Barthou'mus. And... Call me Mark." I replied, looking over and taking a glance at where I slugged him. The jet-black **(I'm going with _Combat Evolved_ armor with this)** armor had a nice little dent in the chest area that I could pop back into place in a moment.

"Alright... Mark. Do you have a plan that goes past the present time?" He asked, and Dawn trotted up to catch up with us.

"Honestly, I'm just going to do my best to get back to Earth before the year is up." I replied, reaching behind my head and slightly rubbing the chip that Reznov inhabited.

"Why would you want to? From what I can tell, where you come from is a lot more dangerous than Equis is." Dawn asked.

"Hell, if it weren't for Reznov, I would gladly stay here for the rest of my life. Even Master Chief knows I need a vacation." I answered, confusing both Barthou'mus and the others.

"Who's Reznov?" The Elite asked, looking around as if to spot him. I'd be damned if he didn't know who John was. The 'Demon of Demons' after all.

**"I am the Smart AI that chose to stick with Mark during the war with the Covenant."** Reznov said, causing him to look at me as if understanding, at least slightly. The Covenant had shitty computers.

"Why is Reznov the cause of you needing to leave?" Dawn asked, as I sighed in sorrow.

**"Because I have about a year left before I start to become rampant."** Reznov answered for me.

"Rampant?" Dune asked, confused.

"It means that Reznov will think himself to death. Smart AIs deteriorate a lot faster that 'dumb' AIs." I replied.

"How come?" Lyra asked, making me realize that me and Barthou'mus had slowed down, allowing the others to catch up.

**"We always need to be doing something, no matter what it is. Even for a few seconds, doing nothing is akin to getting a pike shoved into your legs. It's agony for us."** Reznov replied, causing Dawn to wince. Glancing at his wings, I happened to notice that one of them had a few scars and were only in patches that had no feathers.

"What happened to you?" I suddenly asked, causing Dune to look a little nervous. Dawn didn't answer me right off the bat, and I waited patiently for him to continue.

"Griffin patrol on the border. I took a few arrows to my right wing, and had that pike Reznov mentioned earlier skewer both of my forelegs. I'm what all Pegasi never wish to be; crippled in the wings." Dawn finally said, and I couldn't help but notice how much effort it took for him to broadcast that memory.

"At least you didn't have your wing cut off with one of the most effective close quarters melee weapons known to mankind." I said, glancing at my hand with a small glare. "But... I do forgive you, Barthou'mus, if that's any form of good things with you."

He didn't get a chance to reply, as a certain pink abomination appeared and shouted something incomprehensible, and I saw that he swung his energy sword downwards in an arc that I knew wouldn't let Pinkie live with her life...

**Author's Note: Gasp!**


	7. Near Death Experience

**Reviews:**

**Sgt Mufflebuns:**  
**Mark: A piano/anvil/wheelchair, an energy sword is not.**

**LexiconHuka:**  
**Barthou'mus: That makes two of us, human. Though, I will not so easily admit this to Mark.**

**Gunsandgames: Just wait.**

**AnalPoptarts:**  
**Barthou'mus: Sadly, I cannot. I do not have the technology to even begin making the tools to fix the tools that the technology requires. All I have is my energy sword, active camouflage, and my armor.**

In a flash, I was able to shove Pinkie Pie out of the way and took the blow instead, hitting the ground while my shields collapsed and left me a sparkling heap of very heavy armor.

"Mark!" Dune shouted, while Barthou'mus, Lyra and Dawn looked shocked. I didn't see Pinkie, probably because she went into a bush.

"D-Did it pierce me?" I quietly asked Reznov. I didn't feel any pain, but shock and adrenaline will do that to someone. Even a Spartan.

**"You're lucky. It only collapsed your shields and left a little gash in your armor. You'll live to fight another day, Spartan."** He replied, causing me to slowly sit up.

"I'd figure my luck would've run out by now..." I groaned, looking down at the gash that was probably a centimeter from revealing my undersuit. "You okay, Pinkie?" I asked, looking down at the wide-eyed mare, who just came out of her bush. Her mane was kinda deflated and slightly darker, but other than that she was fine.

"Y-Yea." She stammered, and I sent a hidden glare at Barthou'mus for almost killing her. He seemed to get it, and sighed.

"I am sorry, pink one. It is just that anything that pops out of nowhere is usually trying to kill me." He more or less apologized. Pinkie seemed to cheer up, shrugging off the near death experience that she had with an alien a moment ago. Dune whispered something to her that I couldn't hear, even with my helmet.

"Alright!" Pinkie suddenly exclaimed, zipping off at speeds that would've been impossible for her.

"So..." The Elite muttered, trying to not have a spasm as Reznov was. "What all do you have in terms of weapons?" He asked, looking at me as we resumed our trek to the village.

"Well, I have my DMR with fifty-nine rounds, a combat knife, and two plasma grenades." I replied. He seemed to seach his body before procurring a Magnum from somewhere, along with three fully loaded magazines for it.

"Would you mind trading for the grenades? These are simply dead weight to me, as it is very difficult to use properly." He asked.

"Tell you what; I'll give you my knife and a grenade for that. You keep two melee weapons, and I keep longer range weapons." I counter offered.

_'No need to tell him I've stored another blade in Dawn's basement.'_ I thought. He thought for a moment, before nodding.

"That is acceptable." He replied, and I flipped my knife so that the blade was in my hand, before giving it to him. After that, I unclipped one of the grenades, and swapped it for the pistol and the three magazines of explosive rounds. Examining it briefly, I saw that another one was already loaded into it.

"Perfect! Just like old times, eh Reznov?" I said.

"...Fuck this, I'm gonna have an aneurysm from trying to figure out the pink one." Reznov groaned, and returned to looking up everything that he could about the Elites. Dawn chuckled at this.

"Believe me, it's best if you give up on trying to understand Pinkie Pie. The last pony who tried did ended up having an aneurysm." He said, getting a grumble from the AI.

"So, what time is it? I'm afraid Reznov hasn't gotten the local time yet." I asked, looking down at Dawn.

"It is currently three in the afternoon." He replied, as Reznov changed the time of day to that, in military time of course. Glancing over at Barthou'mus, I noticed he was doing the same with a Tac-Pad on his wrist.

"Wait, how do you know what time it is without having a watch?" I suddenly asked.

"I've been in Princess Celestia's day guard for over thirty years. I instinctively know where her sun is in the sky." He replied, causing both me and Barthou'mus to start laughing like idiots.

"What?" Dune asked, confused.

"You honestly believe that somebody raises the sun?" I asked, shaking my head in pity.

"Yes!" Dune and Lyra yelled, while Dawn motioned me to crouch down.

"Celestia doesn't actually move the sun, rather just rotate the planet. A few thousand years ago, a being called Discord pretty much made the planet's orbit decay until she was forced to take control of the orbit herself." He whispered, low enough to where only I could hear it.

**"Well, that actually makes a lot more sense."** Reznov muttered to me, sending the information over to Barthou'mus while also telling him to not say it out loud. He nodded sagely, before turning back to Lyra.

"It seems we are just confused on your culture and your gods." He said, not really giving out an answer, but also not lying at the same time. At this point, we were on the edge of the forest, and what we stumbled upon made me groan as I lifted my DMR up to where I would easily be able to shoot should it come to that.

"I should have realized the guard would come to apprehend you..." Dawn groaned, face...hoofing.


	8. Fight

**Reviews:**

**Halomaniac: Oh yes!**

**LexiconHuka: Too late, we've already set sail!**

**Sgt. Mufflebuns: Care to elaborate?**

Almost immediately, Barthou'mus and I were surrounded while Dawn, Dune, and Lyra were shunted out of the circle. We were forced to go back-to-back in response.

"Never thought I'd be doing this with you. Fighting alongside a Sangheili, yea, but not like this." I muttered to the Elite behind me, who grunted in response.

"By order of Princess Celestia, you are under arrest!" One of the golden armored ponies commanded, causing me to scoff.

"Yea... No." I shot back, before looking back at 'mus.

"What is it?" He muttered, activating his energy sword.

"Don't kill them unless absolutely necessary." I replied. He nodded and roared as he brought his left hand down upon the skull of a guard who was overly impatient and got too close. At the same time, I flipped my rifle onto my back as I punched a pegasus that was in the middle of a dive bomb. I saw a purple beam hit me and nothing happened.

"That didn't even register high enough for the shields to need to deflect it..." Reznov muttered as I threw the pegasus that was on the ground at the offending unicorn, sending both of them sprawling.

"I may need my knife back!" I called out to the Elite as I ducked under another thrown pony, this time by the Elite.

"Then take it!" He yelled, kicking one in the face while simultaneously flipping it at me. I dived to catch it, sprung onto my feet, and jumped over a startled earth pony. All in all, it took me half a second to recover my blade and get back over to Barthou'mus.

We knocked out fifteen guards before one of them got a hit on Barthou'mus, sending him to the ground roaring in pain. In a literal flash, I was crouched above him, my Magnum in my left hand while my knife in a reverse grip in the other.

"Any one of you fuckers get any closer, and the next wound's going to be fucking fatal!" I snarled, glancing down at the indigo blood leaking from Barthou'mus' side. How they managed to pierce his armor and shield while not even registering on mine was confusing.

"Barthou'mus!" Lyra yelled in shock, struggling to break through the line of guards I was glaring at.

"Stay back, Lyra! This more than likely will get ugly!" I yelled back, shifting a little to let her see that he was alive, for the moment.

"You still have a small amount of Biofoam in your trauma kit, Mark." Reznov muttered, causing me to look down at Barthou'mus.

"Dig out the can in my trauma kit and use it on your wound, dude." I said just loud enough for him to hear. "Too busy keeping them from killing us." With a weak nod, he reached up and dug through it, while I aggressively pointed my Magnum at anybody who got too close.

"Thanks..." He coughed once he retrieved the can, pushing the nozzle into the wound and letting the green foam lose, rapidly fixing his ass up.

"Mark! Behind you!" Reznov warned, causing me to spin around and catch a spear that was chucked at me.

"A spear? Cute." I replied, dropping my knife onto Barthou'mus' chest. I clamped my pistol to my hip, deciding to use the spear as a weapon instead.

"I am better." Barthou'mus said, causing me to creep forward, allowing him to get up and cover my back.

"Just don't take another hit like that, I only had the one can." I shot at him. He chuckled and gripped his knife tightly in response.

"ENOUGH!" Dawn shouted, startling a pegasus that was about to stupidly charge me. If he would've followed through, he'd have a spear going through his side.

"You fuckers say that we're under arrest, and yet I haven't heard the reason as to why we are!" I shouted, glaring at them.

"You were attacking the nearby town!" One of them yelled back in response. "On top of possessing weapons without proper paperwork, and resisting arrest!"

"Who in the fuck said I was attacking the town?!" I shouted, standing to my full height, towering over them.

"Half of Ponyville!" The redshirt shot back.

"If I wanted to attack civilians, I'd shoot myself." I snarled.

**[Dawn's POV]**

"Enough arguing, dammit!" I yelled again, forcing myself past two guards who were persistent on keeping me behind them.

"And who might you be?" The Lieutenant that was arguing with Mark asked, glaring at me.

"Your fucking commander, you ignoramus." I growled. "I'm not in uniform, but I'm damn sure that I can stop the unlawful arrest of an extraequestrial being." Mark scoffed, but nodded in agreement.

"If you'd do that in UNSC territory, it'd be considered a bloody hate crime." He inputted, and the Lieutenant started looking less sure of himself.

"You're a commander?" The 'Elite', Barthou'mus, quietly asked me, leaning over slightly.

"Retiring in a month, but I he doesn't need to know that." I muttered, before stepping forward next to Mark.

**[Mark's POV]**

I barely noticed out of the corner of my eye (thanks Reznov) that there was another pegasus hoping to blindside me. Just to prove that I was very hard to take down, I let 'em slam into me.

**"Well, they're not able to do much against your shields when they smash into you..."** Reznov commented as my shields were only slightly drained, amusing me greatly. Dawn eyed me as I glowed a little and let my shields recharge.

"You can't injure me, so you might as well stop attacking me." I commented as the pegasus held his head, muzzle bleeding freely.

"..." The stallion, if I remember, was silent, as a bright golden flash appeared behind us, Lyra and Dune collectively gasped, and Barthou'mus growled.

"And another competitor enters the fray..." I muttered, slowly turning around.


	9. Princess of the Sun

**Reviews:**

**Gunsandgames: You're right.**

**LexiconHuka: I counter with my Uggnoy!**

**Sgt. Mufflebuns: Why so?**

**spartan1735: Heh, 'plot'.**

**garebare65 (1-4): lol**  
**5: Bart thou 'mus. Pretty much like how it looks.**  
**6-8: Facedesk. And yes, you spelled crikey right.**

"Who's this?" I muttered as I observed an actual horse, but with wings, horn, and an odd ass mane. Instead of one or two colors, she, I think, had four different colors and her mane was billowing as if there was a breeze (confirmed there wasn't by looking at Dawn's mane). Her ass-mark was of a sun.

Her eyes bore into my visor with undilluted fury, but also hesitation.

"I could ask you the same, human." She (I was right!) growled.

"Then I guess we're at a stalemate, then!" I exclaimed, holding my arms out to the side.

**"What are you playing at, Mark?"** Reznov muttered.

"We can't answer each other if you're not willing to start off with the answers!" I noticed Barthou'mus had turned on his active camouflage even before I turned around. As I was getting glared at, I saw the slight movements that indicated where he was, and he was going behind the horse.

"Very well then. I am Princess Celestia, Raiser of the Sun. Now, answer me." She introduced herself.

"What species are you? You appear to be a hybrid of pegasi and unicorns." I asked instead. She narrowed her eyes.

"I am known as an alicorn." She answered, gritting her teeth a little.

"How many alicorns are there?" I asked, grinning as I saw her obvious fury.

"Just me and my sister." She grunted. "Stop playing around and answer me!"

"Who says that I'm playing around? I'm honestly interested." I scoffed, grinning like an asshat.

**"Honestly, what the hell are you doing?"** Reznov asked again.

"Stalling." I muttered back, and grinned more when an energy sword appeared in mid-air.

"Now, I know you think I'm a menace, need to be killed, etc..." I started, focusing my visor on Celestia. "But I'm not the creature you have to worry about. There was an 'alien' when you appeared, no?" At that point, Barthou'mus chuckled, making her whirl around in shock.

"You attack him, you're not going to live." Was all his 'disembodied' voice said, the energy sword lifting up and pointing straight at her. From what I could see, it was roughly half an inch from her muzzle, close enough to feel the heat.

"And vice versa. We're both dangerous enough to kill you should you attack either one of us. Hell, I bet I'm the more dangerous one, since I don't have the same code of honor as a Shangheili does." I added, crossing my arms.

"And what's stopping you two from suddenly lashing out and killing my subjects?!" Celestia growled.

"If I wanted to kill a civilian, no matter the race, I'd kill myself. When the war between humanity and the Covenant was in its prime, I was deployed on two or three home worlds to do as much damage as I possibly could. All of the casualties caused by me were of military personnel. Hell, I saved Covenant civilians when my actions put them in danger." I explained.

"I've learned that it is a tretcherous act to kill an unarmed. The Covenant used to do it all the time, but after my second or third I began regretting it." Barthou'mus added. Celestia stood still for the most part, glaring at the both of us. Well, glaring at me and a floating energy sword.

"Like I said, we're at a stalemate. Should you decide to lash out at us, you would very well regret that move." I said, before disappearing before her eyes, as the twin blade of Barthou'mus' energy sword disappeared too, and I crept away while Celestia swiveled around, trying to locate me.

"Do you think it was wise to antagonize her, Mark?" Dawn asked when they found us in his house, half an hour later. I tell you right now, it is NOT fun watching an Elite eat. It's pretty much like watching a snake eat, except snakes don't have arms, mandibles, and are fugly.

"It'll teach her to not mess with us, or your princess is stupid if she does." I said, cleaning my magnum. The ponies narrowed their eyes at me.

"Why do you say that?" Lyra challenged.

**"Because Mark and Barthou'mus have both been trained to sabotage enemy troops, bases, and preform assassinations. Even if one is killed or captured, the other would be able to preform better than your guard, from what I saw in the fight. Strangely, Mark isn't affected by your 'magic', while Barthou'mus is."** Reznov explained, thinking alout at the end.

"What was with that glowy stuff?" Dune asked.

"Blue or golden?" I asked back.

"The golden stuff over your armor." She clarified.

"Ah, that was just my shields taking the damage." I explained. "Barthou'mus and I have personal shields, but apparently his doesn't stop 'magic' while mine won't even bother regestering it. In fact, that pegasus that rammed into me barely registered, while a single punch from another Spartan or an Elite would fully drain them."

"How strong are you, anyway?" Dawn asked.

"I'm able to flip a 70 ton Scorpion tank with only getting a shattered ankle." I deadpanned, causing all three ponies.

"That's a big bug..." Lyra finally spoke.

**"It's not actually a bug, Lyra."** Reznov said, popping up suddenly.** "This is what Mark is talking about."** With that, came a hologram of a Scorpion, sized up to be large as life to him.

Over the next few hours, we discussed a lot about the different vehicles that both the UNSC and the Covenant used.


	10. Rave

**Reviews:**

**Gunsandgames: If he can flip a tank, he can lift a tank! (with severe consequences, but that's below.)**

**LexiconHuka:**  
**Mark: I've lifted the Halo Ring with my nose before.**

**garebare65: Actually, it's post Halo 4 by half a year. Mark survived the shitstorms by being at Chief's back the entire way. (And asleep during the Reach shit.)**

**spartan1735: Yea, I can't help it.**

**Sgt. Mufflebuns: Good for you!**

**AnalPoptarts:**  
**Barthou'mus: Cherry. I'm allergic to apples.**

**dannymxyz: (I think it's Elephant, but it may be Mammoth) And thanks for being the 50th reviewer! You win NOTHING!**  
**Mark: Never tried flipping one of them...**  
**Reznov: And you never will, dammit! Not without seven other Spartan-IIs!**

"How come you aren't asleep?" Dawn asked me while I was looking out of a window at roughly three in the morning.

"Augmentations, more or less. I'm able to stay up for three days and still have enough energy to run fifty miles. Granted, I could do that in about an hour if I didn't have my restraints on." I replied.

"What do you mean by restraints?" He asked as he sat down next to me.

"Armor has restraints that only Reznov can switch on or off. Some of them limit how much I can lift, others limit how fast I can go. It's for my own good, and he'll only turn them off when I absolutely need him to. Go too fast for too long, I end up with shattered ankles, feet, and legs. Lift too much, I end up with a shattered spine or worse." I explained.

"Has it happened before?" Dawn asked.

**"Yes, it has, not limited to just Mark. Every Spartan has similar augmentations, and share identical risks. Mark's shattered his spine when he managed to lift a Scorpion up, and I've had to use a manual override on his armor several times to haul him to an evac when his legs were shattered due to running too long without restraints."** Reznov replied from his disk.

"What's your top speed?" Dawn asked.

"Eh, I'd say about seventy miles an hour. Didn't even get halfway when I was running here with your daughter two days ago." I said, shrugging.

"How badly were you injured?" Dawn kept pressing, and I honestly didn't mind. Kept me focused.

"Not at all, actually. I only had to sprint for a thousand meters. Made it in less than five seconds." I replied.

"That's... Fast." Dawn muttered, looking away.

"So, mind telling me about yourself? Heard you're a General." I said, leaning against the wall and putting my hands into my lap.

"Well, I'm retiring in about a month, actually. Soon, I'll be a civilian." He admitted with a shrug.

"Wonder what it's like to be a civilian..." I muttered, looking down.

**"Before you ask, Mark didn't sign up for the Spartan-II program voluntarily. He was kidnapped at seven, and forced through ten years of hell to become one of the deadliest humans alive. From what I've last seen, he's one of the only II's left."** Reznov explained, earning a pity filled glance at me.

"I'm sorry." Dawn said, before looking down.

"Don't be, because I've only hated it for the first year or so. Figured I'd do my best to serve the UNSC, no matter what. Hell, I'm pretty sure I'd sign up later, become an ODST, and fuck the Covenant up anyway. The war wasn't going on when I was kidnapped, but that's beside the point." I dismissed, looking back out the window.

The Royal Guard that was watching the house was still out there, standing as still as a statue with a scowl on his face, and muzzle heavily wrapped up. It was the pegasus that broke his face on my back. I waved to him, earning a deeper scowl.

"Please, don't antagonize them. They're only doing their job." Dawn requested.

**"Mark is juvenile, even though it was supposed to be stamped out through the augmentation processes."** Reznov stated.

"I enjoy playing pranks and messing with Marines when I have downtime. Sad thing is, I've only gotten an hour of downtime once a month and in between slipspace jumps." I added. "I'm considered 'needed' personnel, probably because I'm Reznov's handler."

**"And vice versa."** Reznov added.

"How does one handle one's handler?" Dawn asked, tilting his head to the side.

"Very carefully." I said at the same time as Reznov.

"By the way, what's your armor made of? Never seen anything like it." Dawn asked, examining it a little more.

"I'd tell you if it wasn't classified. Barthou'mus and I got here somehow, and we can find a way back. We have over a year to do so. And since Reznov is the dutiful AI he is, I'll end up being court marshaled if I tell you." I said, shrugging.

"That's too bad..." Dawn muttered. "Do you ever take it off?"

"The only time I took my armor off was to get a new set, since my first one was too badly damaged to fix. Plasma burns, entire right arm sliced off, it was literally falling apart while the Chief and I were escaping Halo." I explained. "I've been in this armor ever since we made it back to Earth, and the only time my skin shows is when I eat. Even then, it's just my lower face."

"How come?"

**"For one, it weighs half a ton and is impossible to get off without special equipment, or if one modifies it heavily. To Spartans, especially Spartan-II's, it's a second skin to them. Leave it off for too long and they'll become uncomfortable as hell."** Reznov explained.

"One of the few Spartan-IIs I could call my friends, Jorge, was a behemoth in his armor. Looked like he had a propane tank strapped to his chest. He modified it to where he could take it off whenever he wanted to. Chief modified his to where it could take Covenant armor abilities. I modified mine to hold two abilities." I said. "You already know what one of them is."

"What's the other?" Dawn asked, tilting his head to the side.

"You'll see soon enough." I said cryptically, before noticing a yawn he tried hiding. "Go on to bed, I'll be fine down here."

He nodded and left me alone with Reznov, leaving us in silence once more.

"Well..." I finally muttered half an hour later. "Might as well get a better layout of the town. 'S go, Reznov." I got up after plugging him back into my helmet, and squeezed through the door.

Almost immediately, I saw five guards forming up 'out of sight'. I wouldn't have noticed them if my motion tracker wasn't malfunctioning.

**"They're following you, you know."** Reznov muttered as I set out in a direction.

"I know." I replied, not bothering to keep my voice down. Let 'em think I'm crazy, it'll work for my benefit when I'm fighting them.

**"You going to do anything about it?"** Reznov asked as I started hearing some sort of noise.

"Nope. Amplify that noise." I answered, pausing as it got louder.

_'That's old Techno!'_ I thought, raising my eyebrows.

"Jesus, I never thought I'd hear something like that again." I breathed, before lightly jogging towards the source. Behind me, the guards scrambled to catch up; one even started flying.

**"Are you sure this action is wise?"** Reznov asked, and I could just see his frown.

"I'll go in camouflaged, so they wouldn't notice me." I replied, skidding to a stop in front of what looked like a somewhat similar place to Dawn's house. Without missing a beat, I turned on my AC and cautiously opened the door, only to have Reznov dull the techno immensely, or else I'd go deaf.

_'It's a bloody rave!'_ I thought as I slipped in, being careful to stick to the shadows. It was really hard, since the entire room (it held a dance floor, bar, ten tables, large speakers, and an old school DJ booth, so guess how large the room was) was full of strobe lights. After carefully moving around for a while, I stopped near the bar and took a seat against the wall. Looking towards the door, I saw several of my escorts carefully enter, looking around for me.

"Sie werden nicht, mich zu finden, bis mein Mantel nachlässt, es sei denn, einer dieser Fahrten Ponys auf meine Füße." **(Google Translate this and tell me what it says. I challenge you!)** I muttered, earning a sigh from Reznov.

**"Which means you only have ten minutes to dick around, Mark. If it was outside, you could stay here for half an hour, but these lights are going too fast for the suit to properly reflect them. Sooner or later, somebody is gonna notice your outline."** Reznov warned.

"Wonder what the Blarg-Tard is doing..." I muttered to change the subject and simultaneously throwing Reznov's concentration off.

**"Wh- Seriously? You're calling Barthou'mus a 'Blarg-Tard'?"** Reznov finally sputtered, getting me to chuckle.

"Got it off of a Marine when they first found Earth. I personally like the insult, myself." I replied.

**"And I wonder why we were losing until the Schism happened..."** Reznov muttered, causing me to roll my eyes.

I was about to get up and leave when my luck finally ran out, and a grey furred, blonde mane pegasus tripped over one of my legs.

"Figures..." I groaned as she looked up at me in confusion.


	11. Derpy

**Reviews:**

**Analpoptarts:**  
**Barthou'mus: Even though I only knew the Demon for a few hours, I'll answer like he would. Because magnets.**

**dreamer 7s & XshadowwriterzX: It was actually supposed to be 'They're not going to find me until my cloak wears off, unless one of these ponies trips on my feet.' That's google translate for ya.**

**RenaTamer (ch7): Yup!**  
**(ch10): I'd comment, but that'd be giving spoilers.**

**Sgt. Mufflebuns: Jeez, you sound depressed. Care to talk about it in a PM, if you are?**

**garebare65: Yep. And if you mean by the 15 round magazine one, then yes.**

**(PS, I'll also be using Google Translate for all other German words/phrases/sentences, so pop in what GT tells you it is if you want!)**

"Oh, schisse..." I muttered, slowly getting ready to bolt.

"You look funny, mister! Or would it be miss? It's hard to tell when you have no face..." She exclaimed, then looked thoughtful.

"It's... mister, ma'am." I hesitantly said, slowly offering out my hand. She took it with her hoof and shook vigorously, surprising me.

"I'm Derpy Hooves!" She exclaimed, before narrowing her eyes. "You never told me your name!" She accused, but didn't look mad. As a matter of fact, she was grinning.

"It's Mark-078." I answered. "And Reznov, of the AI in my helmet." I added.

"What does AI stand for?" She asked.

"Artificial Intelligence, sort of. He's a human like me, but turned into a digital brain to live several more years." I replied.

"So he looks like an image, but was actually somepony alive? That sounds cool!" She exclaimed, surprising me and Reznov.

**"She's fairly intelligent for being a pony, from what I've seen so far."** Reznov said.

"Most ponies assume I'm stupid due to my crossed eyes, but I just shrug it off and move on." She answered for him, not even making me wonder how she heard him. She was able to hear me, after all.

"Well, I have no reason to think so. Friends?" I asked, holding out my hand. In response, she gave me a wide grin and shoved a freakin' muffin onto me.

"Every single friend I have gets a muffin!" She chirped, and I suddenly felt a little hungry. Not to dampen her spirits, I lifted my helmet a little and took a cautious bite out of it.

I was surprised that even though it looked like blueberry, it wasn't very sweet. Non-sweet enough for me to eat, at least.

"How was it?" She asked when I finished.

"Not very sweet. How'd you know I don't work out well with sugar?" I commented before putting my helmet back on fully.

"Just call it a hunch. I gotta get back to dancing with my coltfriend! See you later, Mark-078?" She asked, grinning a little.

"It's just Mark to my friends, and yes, I'll see you later Derpy." I replied, patting her on the head. At that moment, my cloak decided to off itself to recharge, and I was left completely visible to the entire place.

To Reznov and mine's surprise, nobody freaked the fuck out. Sure, I got a lot of curious stares, but nothing too Gruntish. Probably thought I was part of the building, seeing as how most of them were drunk as hell.

"You know what'd be funny?" I mused about five minutes later.

**"What?"** Reznov sighed, probably thinking where I was going with this.

"What if we stumbled across a Grunt? Or a pair of Hunters? Jesus, Barthou'mus alone is gonna get a lotta fear. Throw in a couple of Hunters and mass panic will ensue." I said, before facepalming. Even five hundred plus years after being created, Murphy's Laws will come and kick me in the ass for just saying that.

**"At least Hunters are relatively neutral towards you for some reason. Maybe because they want to eat your arm. They attack you and they risk fucking it up."** Reznov muttered.

"Way to make me feel better." I replied.

**"Hey, I was just stating my opinion!"** Reznov countered.

"Fein. Jetzt, geh weg, du kleines arschloch ärgerlich." I growled.

**"Alright, I'll just go and not help your armor from deteriorating."** Reznov mock groaned, and shut up.

It took him twenty seconds to talk to me again.

Turns out, Murphy's Law did indeed come to bite me back on the ass.

**"HUNTER!"** Reznov screamed over everyone else that was screaming. Mostly outside. I groaned and bolted out the door, barreling over a guard that barely missed becoming goo. I was hit instead.


	12. Of Rainbows and Hospitals

**Reviews:**

**ThePenReader: Thanks!**

** : 1. Seemed like it, but alright.**  
**2. Yeppers**

**AnalPoptarts: Murphy is always watching.**

**LexiconHuka: Very impressive.**

**whovian803: (ch5) Mark: It's actually Italian**  
**(ch10): Already commented on what it was to be.**  
**(ch11): Something!**

**garebare65: Mark: I can imagine it now; a stealth Hunter... Jesus, I'm glad they couldn't employ that technology. Normal Hunters are bad enough to fight, imagine one that's invisible and completely silent when walking!**

"How's he doing?" Somebody asked as I was brought back to consciousness painfully.

**"He's suffering from heat stroke, broken bones, and severe dehydration. I'm honestly surprised he isn't dead right now. The way that Hunter blasted him would've killed a normal Spartan, but he isn't normal."** Reznov replied, while I tried to find a part of me that wasn't in pain.

That was hard as hell, but I ended up settling on one of my molars, and focused on it with all my might.

"For a 'Spartan', how bad is he?" That voice said again.

**"He'll be up to 85% at the end of the day."** Reznov replied, and I started wishing that Barthou'mus didn't get a hole punched into him. Could've used that biofoam right now.

"So, what is he exactly? The body structure resembles a human, but they're mythical beings." Voice says. Cracking open my eyes, I notice that my helmet's off, and a very familiar weight isn't present.

_'Oh, schisse!'_ I thought, feeling exposed as hell. They fucking took my armor off!

"How are you feeling, Mark?" Dune asked once she noticed that I was looking around in shock.

"Exposed. I want my armor back on _now_." I grunted, looking around for it.

**"Trust me Mark, you need to heal first."** Reznov said from his pedestal, causing me to glare at him.

"You of all people know that I absolutely _hate_ being exposed!" I growled, forcing myself to my feet even with my bones broken. I could instantly tell my left thigh was broken.

**"And you know that I wouldn't tell you to stay out of it unless I have a _good_ reason!"** He shot back, making me falter for a moment. **"Just trust me Mark, you can't put your armor back on yet. The radiation is still being removed."** He sighed, shaking his head a little.

"What's the danger of a little radiation? Armor Lock pumped me full of it the one time I used it, and I'm still here." I shot back.

**"You're lucky you're still in one piece! That much radiation would've killed a Spartan-III already!"** Reznov yelled, and flickered red a little. Knowing that if I pissed him off, I could possibly speed up his rampancy, I decided to yield.

"Fine..." I finally said. "But I'm sure as hell not gonna like it." I added when I sat back down.

**"I'm not asking you to. Sand Dune, could you please hand him his Magnum?"** Reznov requested.

"Why?" Dune asked, confused. Honestly, I wasn't surprised.

**"Because it will be a small comfort for him. Imagine being bedridden while feeling exposed like him, and having almost nothing to defend yourself should the need arise."** He explained. Dune thought for a moment before nodding, levitating my Magnum into my outstretched hand.

"Thank you." I said, checking the magazine before sliding it back in with a satisfying click. The small smile on my face probably unnerved some of them, but I didn't care at the moment.

"How is it we can't use magic on you?" A doctor from the looks of it asked, making me note that he was the owner of the voice.

"No idea." I replied, unsure if I should mention Barthou'mus. Glancing at Reznov, he seemed to know what I mentally asked him and nodded.

**"I already told him."** He said.

"Barthou'mus is affected, while I'm not." I said, leaning forward a little despite my cracked ribs.

"Doesn't that hurt?" Dune asked.

"More than I'm letting on." I casually replied, while also casually hiding a wince.

**"Some of the injuries he's had make this seem like a sprain. Remember, he's missing an arm."** Reznov added.

"Speaking of which..." The pony doctor muttered, before glancing to my right. "What is the metal made of? It's different than the armor you and the colony of worms wore."

"Classified." I replied. "I'm just telling you this now, doc. If I cannot make it back to UNSC territory within a year, I'll be able to tell you anything if I deem it alright."

"Why's that?" He asked, and Dune already knew the answer.

**"Because I'll 'die', in a sense. That is only if we cannot get back into UNSC territory by then."** Reznov grimly stated.

* * *

Half an hour later, I was bouncing a rubber ball against the wall with extreme caution. Don't want to accidentally throw it too hard and send it through the wall, or worse, lose one of the only things I have to entertain myself. A cyan pegasus was wheeled in, fast asleep, while I decided to clean my Magnum.

"Who's she?" I asked, nodding at the unconscious pony.

"Her name's Rainbow Dash. She sprained her left forehoof while doing a training exercise out in the fields surrounding Ponyville." The doctor, a female one this time, answered as she wheeled the bed into place about three meters away from me and to my left.

"Alright." I muttered, starting to wish for my helmet. With all the stuff I had on there, nobody would get bored until hell froze over. Sighing, I continued throwing the ball at the wall and whacking it when it came towards me.

Another hour later, I gave up trying to alleviate my boredom with this rubber ball, and gently tossed it to where it rested in between Dash's hind legs and gently eased myself to my feet. Limping slowly towards the window, I already started favoring my right leg to help my left finish healing. I also made sure to keep the IVs in me so I could keep hydrated. Didn't want to piss Reznov off too much.

"Let's see what the civilians are doing..." I muttered, looking out the window. The first thing I saw was the Hunter that put me in the hospital was standing guard at the door, but not to where nobody could get in or out. Easing the window open, I breathed in the cool morning air unfiltered. It smelled quite nice, not at all unlike some remote places on Reach before the Covenant got to it.

"Ugh..." A gruff, but definitely female, voice groaned from behind me, indicating that this Rainbow Dash had woken up. I didn't bother to turn around, and it seems that she didn't see me or didn't care, as the rubber ball that was resting in between her thighs began to bounce against the wall like before. Spotting Barthou'mus down below talking to the Hunter, I dropped my only magazine onto his head. He noticed immediately, of course.

"What is it?" He called up, as both of them looked up at me.

"Could'ja convince Reznov to give me my helmet? I'm bored out of my mind up here!" I requested.

"I'll see what I can do." Barthou'mus replied and tossed my magazine back up, which I nimbly caught and slid it back into the Magnum. The Hunter kept looking up at me, causing me to nod a little. It nodded in return and went back to staring at the town.

_'Can't really hate it for putting me in here. That shot wasn't meant for me, after all.'_ I thought, turning away and sitting back down on the bed.

"So, what are you and what're you in for?" Dash asked about a minute later, making me look up from my thoughts.

"I'm a _Homo Sapien_, or more commonly known as a human. I have broken ribs and a broken thigh. Also suffering from heat stroke, hence the IVs pumping fluids into me." I explained.

"Are all humans about eight hooves tall, or is it just you? The myths don't say much about your height." Dash commented. I'm guessing 'hooves' are 'feet' for these ponies.

"I'm a soldier known as a Spartan. Specifically a Spartan-II." I explained. "Spartans were modified to be better than an average human." I'm not telling her exactly what I got pumped into me or for what reason.

"You're a soldier? Did'ja kill anypony?" She eagerly asked, surprising me a little.

"No _ponies_, but I've killed a few different species of aliens." I'm also not telling her of the humans I've killed.

"What kinds of aliens?" She asked.

"The bad kind." I grinned. "The ones that shot at me first."

Barthou'mus took that moment to walk in empty handed.

"I'm sorry, Demon. He wouldn't let me give it to you." He apologized, while Dash shrank back a little. A Spec. Ops. Elite is intimidating to anybody who hasn't seen one before.

"It's fine. Keeping myself from going nuts by talking to the lady here." I replied, waving halfassedly at Rainbow Dash.

"Hello." He said with a small bow to the pegasus.

"Rainbow Dash, this is Barthou'mus. Vice versa." I introduced to the two.

"How'dja know my name? I didn't introduce myself to you!" She exclaimed, ripping her large eyes away from 'mus to look at me in confusion.

"The nurse that wheeled you in told me who you were." I replied, before looking at 'mus. "Does the Hunter have a name?" I asked.

"Yes, it's name is Konthou." He answered.

"Isn't that more of an Sangheili name?" I asked, knowing that I heard of it before somewhere.

"Yes. But even a Grunt can be called Konthou, as unlikely as it is." He replied.

"Why are you referring this 'Hunter' as an it?" Dash asked.

"Hunters are nothing more than a colony of psychic worms that can work as one." I replied.

"So, what are you?" Dash changed the subject, looking at Barthou'mus.

"My species is known as the Shangheili. We are a proud warrior race that strive to be as honorable as possible." He answered. "We were part of a collective of species known as the Covenant." He added.

"What do you mean, _were_?" Dash asked.

"They disbanded after the Prophets pretty much ordered another species nicknamed 'Brutes' to kill them. Hunters, Grunts (also known as Unggoy) and others also left, but most stayed loyal to the Prophets." I answered. "We were at war with the Covenant for a long time. And we were losing until they left."

"So, you killed each other?" Dash asked, her eyes widening.

"Yes." I replied. "But as I said before, only to the ones that attacked me first."

"He was known as the _Honorable Demon_ amongst the Covenant." Barthou'mus replied. "He didn't kill civilians when deployed onto Covenant controlled worlds. He also didn't kill anyone who didn't attack him first, military personnel or not. The Brutes were the only exception. Dishonorable scum." He growled out the last two words.

"Bloody apes always attacked me, regardless of being military or not..." I muttered, looking around. Peeking outside again, I suddenly noticed that there was a lot of activity, and I also saw a certain pink abomination zooming away from a lavender unicorn that had a purple lizard on her back.

"Hey, is there a holiday happening soon? Lotta activity outside." I asked, looking at Dash.

"I noticed that too. Had to use my Camouflage to get here undetected." Barthou'mus added.

"The Summer Sun Celebration is in the morning!" Dash exclaimed.

"What's it about?" I asked, raising an eyebrow.

"It celebrates the longest day of the year. We get to host it in Ponyville this year!" She explained, brimming with anticipation.

"Alright Rainbow Dash, you may sign yourself out now. Just try to keep off of your hoof until tomorrow." The nurse from earlier said once she came in, faltering for a moment at the sight of Barthou'mus.

"Alright! I hate being in here!" She exclaimed. "Er, no offense." She added with a sheepish grin, before flying off after the nurse.

"Guess I might at well get some sleep. I'll see you later, Barthou'mus." I sighed, lying down and closing my eyes as the Elite grunted in confirmation and left, closing the door behind him.

Always good to get a little rest; never know when your next fight is.

**Author's Note: Whelp, you all know where this is timeline wise!**


	13. Party

**Reviews: Jesus Christ all these Guests**

**Guest 1:**  
**Barthou'mus: One big one**

**Guest 2: Marines make the best insults**

**Guest 3:**  
**Reznov: Yes, but without any prior data on the languages, I cannot translate. And I do not understand vibrations like Barthou'mus does, so he's our translator for Konthou.**

**Guest 4:**  
**Mark: Who?**

**Guest 5: okay? Kinda hard to tell when you all are Guests...**

**Sgt. Mufflebuns: Finally, somebody with a name besides 'Guest'!**

About two hours later, Barthou'mus came in to wake me up. Naturally, he had a Magnum shoved into his mouth before I could remember where I was.

"Sorry." I muttered as I sat back down.

"It is alright. Reznov said that your armor is able to be worn again." He said, waving a hand dismissively. That noticeably brightened my day up, even if it was sunny as fuck outside.

"Take me to it, I feel too fucking exposed." I requested, getting to my feet with a groan. My leg was healing, but fuck did it hurt. Barthou'mus must've seen through my facade because he helped me walk downstairs.

"You probably should stay for a day, Mark." He muttered as I limped my way alongside him.

"I've been through worse. Should've seen what that Scorpion did to me." I dismissed.

About an hour later, I was walking the fuck out of that hospital in my beautiful as fuck armor and Reznov plugged into the back of my helmet.

**"We're going to attract a lot of attention..."** Reznov muttered as my helmet slightly dimmed the late afternoon sunlight.

"Like I give a damn at this point. Let's get going, Konthou." I said to the Hunter. I noticed a very distinct lack of ponies, and that worried me a little.

"We might have trouble..." Barthou'mus muttered as the three of us collectively raised our weapons from a force of habit.

The three of us crept down the street at about ten yards a minute, turning towards every sound that we heard. We ended up in front of a large tree that had a lot of movement inside.

**"Check it out, Mark."** Reznov whispered in helmet only mode. I brought my fist up to tell them to wait, and they thankfully did. Turning on my Camouflage, I slowly brought my head up to view inside, and I saw something peculiar happening.

There was another party going on, and it seemed the guest of honor was the purple unicorn I saw earlier. As I watched for any signs of an ambush, Pinkie fucking waved at me as if she saw straight through my damn cloak. I slowly waved back, causing her to say something to the mare and zip over to the window, cracking it open.

"Hiya, Markie!" She exclaimed in her bubbly self.

"First, never call me Markie again. Second, how in the hell did you know that I was here?" I asked quietly. To anyone who happened to look over, Pinks was peering out of the window and down at the ground.

"Pssh! I noticed you because the author wrote it in!" She exclaimed (thus completing the mandatory breaking of the fourth-wall, which was essential for **every** respectable fan-fiction. _MiE _will have that soon.) as she pointed a hoof at the sky.

I simply stared at her before sighing and shaking my head.

"Hey, you wanna come in? I just remembered that I've never thrown you your 'Welcome to Ponyville' party!" She suddenly asked. Barthou'mus and I instantly looked nervous, while I'm no fucking pro on Hunter emotions.

"Uh, are you sure that's a good idea?" I hesitantly asked.

**"Of course it's not a good fucking idea!"** Reznov shouted, still using helmet only mode.

"You can't be accepted by Ponyville if you just stay in Dawn's basement!" Pinkie argued, and, I have no idea how the hell it happened even to this day, the four of us were in the middle of the crowd of ponies in an instant.

You know that old Earth saying? A white man walks into a black bar and the music stops as everyone stares?

Pretty sums up what happened when they all noticed that we appeared.

It took them a minute, but they finally started screaming, save for Lyra, Dawn, Pinkie and Dune.

"Think we should let them tire themselves out, then explain?" I quietly asked Barthou'mus, who was just standing there all awkward like.

"That might not be wise." He muttered, frowning a little. "Though, it may be entertaining."

"I'll give 'em a minute." I said, before checking to make sure that my Magnum was fully loaded. From the looks that Dune gave me, she knew exactly what this would do, and started frantically indicating that I don't fire.

**"Time's up."** Reznov said a minute later, and I rose my arm up in response, squeezing the trigger.

The ceiling looks pretty cool now that there's a small crater in it. Even though the round going off wasn't as loud as the ponies were, it was different enough for them to shut up right then and there.

"Listen up!" I calmly said. "For anyone who wants to leave because you're frightened at the sight of us, you may do so. The rest of you, continue on with your party. Blame Pinkie Pie for us being here." I ordered. About half of the town fled, which was surprising in itself. The myths about us didn't portrait me in the best of lights.

"What do we do?" Barthou'mus asked, tapping me on the shoulder.

"I'ma go sit in a corner and watch these ponies for their habits. It's always fun with Marines, considering there's usually a lot of alcohol involved." I answered, picking out a corner near a flight of stairs and promptly sat my heavy ass down.

**"You're creeping and you know it, Mark."** Reznov told me as I started stripping my DMR to make sure it was in perfect shape. The pony doctors had it for most of a day, so I was erring on the side of caution.

"Hello?" A timid voice quietly voiced, causing me to look at the pony wanting to talk to me from the top of my visor.

"Yes?" I asked. She let out an 'eep' and shrunk back a little, before I lifted my head to look at her better.

She was a butter colored pegasus with a pink mane (which she was currently hiding behind) and teal colored eyes.

"U-Um, what are you?" She quietly asked, shrinking back a little. "If you don't mind me asking..."

"It's not a problem." I smiled a little behind my helmet, but didn't take it off. "My species is known as Homo Sapiens, more commonly known as humans." Unlike as expected, she didn't start backing away. Instead, she gently poked my knee in confusion.

"Are you made of metal?" She asked, gaining a little amount of balls.

"No." I said with a held back laugh. "It's just armor." Shocking everyone who knew me (Reznov), I took off my helmet and let her see my face.

"You seem... pale." She muttered.

"It's because I'm almost always in it." I answered. She tilted her head in confusion.

"How come?" She asked.

"I feel... uncomfortable without wearing it." I admitted. "It feels very unnatural for me without it."

"That's how I feel with large crowds..." She quietly admitted.

"To each their own discomforts." I said with a shrug, before slipping my helmet back on. "By the way, what's your name?" I asked after a moment, already going back to maintaining my DMR.

"It's Fluttershy..." She said while watching me.

"My name's Mark." I gave my name up.

**"Might as well introduce myself, too."** Reznov sighed, causing her to eep in surprise and look around. He transferred himself to a small holopad on my Tacpad, and nodded to Fluttershy.** "My name's Reznov."**

"How are you doing that?" Fluttershy softly asked as she recovered.

**"I'm an Artificial Intelligence designated 'Reznov' by my creators. In short, I am not living, though I do act like a human."** He explained as Barthou'mus walked over with Rainbow Dash draped over his shoulders. He seemed a bit uncormfortable, but was being nice and let her stay.

"So, what's the big thing again?" Dash asked while Fluttershy trembled at the sight of Blarg-tard.

"Konthou is a Hunter." I answered, gently dragging Fluttershy over and scratched behind an ear. For some reason, this calmed her down almost immediately. Probably because my left arm is never as cold as my right.

"Hey, I didn't want to seem rude earlier," Dash started. "But why is your right foreleg made of metal?"

"First, it's an arm, and it's because he," I said, waving at the being she was draped over, "sliced it off about ten years ago." The room got a little darker as they stared at him in shock.

"Why did you do that to him?!" Fluttershy half yelled as she got up in Barthou'mus' face, staring at him. It did nothing, and this seemed to surprise her.

"Fluttershy, calm down. He was just following what his religion demanded at the time, and I've already forgiven him for it." I said, reaching up and gently tugging on her tail.

The rest of the party went smoothly, though most of the guests stayed the fuck away from me.

At about 5 in the morning, a little purple lizard yelled out that it was time for the Celebration to begin. Wanting to learn a little of their culture while they were stuck on the planet, the three beings from another world decided to go and watch.


	14. Endless Night, Part 1

**Reviews:**

**Der Kaiser: Here!**

**Guardians of Time: Depends on the creature. I'm pushing what I originally thought up by hadding Konthou and Barthou'mus to this. If it's a pony/Friendship is Magic based character, go right the fuck ahead!**

**LexiconHuka: **  
**Mark (MiE): I reccomend the Salted Mare.**  
**Mark (H: FE): Who the fuck are you?**  
**Mark (MiE): Somebody. *random explosion and gone***  
**Mark (H: FE): Well... That escalated quickly.**

** (ch13): Wut.**  
**(ch1): Wut again.**

**kid: That'll be about 5,000 words or something. Don't have enough space in my toliet for that brick.**

**garebare65(ch12): Not really. More like what happened with the cockatrice, since Barthou'mus injured Mark, for what she thought was no reason.**  
**(ch12): That'll be cool.**

**Author's Note: Fuck it. Every chapter of my stories is gonna have a quote either related to something in the text, or something that an OC would say. That includes this one.**

"So, what are we gonna be expecting from this?" I asked Rainbow Dash and Fluttershy, both of whom had tasked themselves to float around my head.

**"Why the fuck are they able to fucking fly?! It's not possible!"** Reznov shouted into my helmet, causing me to switch over to helmet only mode.

"Old Earth helicopters and bumble bees were physically impossible in the flight department, yet they ignored that rule, too. Who's to say the pegasi on this planet aren't another exception?" I calmly replied.

**"Yea, well fuck you!"** Was his smart reply. I sighed, and turned my attention back to the pegasi flying around me before he had a virtual aneurysm.

"-tia raises the sun in front of the entire town!" Dash was finishing. Sadly, I only caught the last part of the explanation, but Blarg-Tard was paying close attention. I got the summary from him over our Tacpads in a small amount of messages.

"Alrighty." Was what I said, so I wouldn't seem rude. The group that was walking around us consisted of nine ponies, a purple lizard, and a colony of super worms.

The ponies were as follows; a white unicorn with an oddly styled purple mane, the lavender unicorn from before, a orange earth pony with a Stetson, Pinkie Pie, Fluttershy, Rainbow Dash, Red Dawn, Sand Dune, and Lyra. The unknown ponies decided it was as a good time as ever to introduce themselves, though I don't know why they didn't at the party.

"My name is Rarity, fashonia and the owner of Carousel Bontique!" The white unicorn proclaimed, eyeing our armor for some reason.

"Ah'm Applejack, owner of Sweet Apple Acres!" The earth pony proudly stated.

"Wasn't I taken from a farm, Reznov?" I muttered.

**"Not exactly, but your father did _work_ on a farm as a farmhand."** Was his answer.

"I'm Twilight Sparkle, student to Princess Celestia." The other unicorn answered, causing me and Barthou'mus to subtly wince. "What about you three?"

**"Figures."** Reznov muttered.

"My name is Mark-078." I answered.

"I'm Barthou'mus, and this is Konthou." Barthou'mus answered for both him and the Hunter.

"I have another question." Twilight started. "What creatures are you?"

"I am a Sangheili, and Konthou is a Hunter." Barthou'mus answered, and attention turned to me.

"I am a Spartan-II." I answered.

_'Fuck it, they don't really _have_ to know I'm a human.'_ I thought.

"What's your professions?" Twilight asked.

"We're all soldiers." I answered. Half of them seemed to pale a little.

"Tell them who you fought!" Dash laughed, flying upside down next to me.

"That's not really nes-" Rarity started, but my reply cut her off.

"We," I started, patting both of the aliens on the back (or in the case of Konthou, armor) "fought each other. Well, it was my species against theirs." I couldn't help but laugh at everyone's (besides the four who got to speak to me before this morning) shocked faces.

"That happens to be in the past." Barthou'mus added, while I casually cracked my back. The M6C sound happened again, causing all of them to flinch, including Blarg-Tard.

"We're here!" Lyra chirped, oblivious to the shocked feelings of the mostly unknown ponies were having.

"Is that supposed to sound like that with all humans?" Fluttershy whispered, floating next to my ear as Barthou'mus entered with the others. Konthou and I decided to stay outside for a few more minutes.

"Cracking my back?" At her nod, I chuckled a little. "Not really. You look at civilians, their backs sound like popping any normal joint. ODSTs, a somewhat similar warrior to us Spartans, sound more like a DMR. Marines have a similar sound to civilians. Seems that only Spartans sound like the magnificant Magnum round firing off." I explained.

"What does 'ODST' stand for?" She asked as I deemed the area clear and slipped inside. Konthou, being fuckmassive, couldn't get in through the front door, so he had to wait outside.

"Orbital Drop Shock Trooper." I answered. "Less armor than a Spartan, but almost as deadly. I overheard Covenants calling them 'Imps'. Compared to our nickname of 'Demons' and you can compare the two of us."

"What're Demons and Imps?" Fluttershy asked, confusing me.

**"Their religions might not mention them, Mark."** Reznov spoke up, causing me to sigh.

"It's hard to explain with your religion." I answered.

"Wha- Oh, I'm sorry, but I have to go conduct the bird choir..." She started, but gasped and flew off after excusing herself. I knew exactly what she was going to say, and it confused the fuck outta me.

"...They don't have a fucking religion?!" I muttered, suddenly feeling a lot like Reznov at the moment. That was bad, seeing as how it took a lot to make that happen.

"...Ya'll okay, sugarcube?" Applejack asked while I had my palm forcibly pushed into my visor. I gave her a hand motion that indicated that I needed a minute.

Three minutes later, I withdrew my hand with a sigh, thus completing the mother of all face palms.

"...Anyway..." Applejack said once I looked back at her. "Do ya'll want sumthin' to eat?"

"No thanks; I had a muffin two days ago." I replied, causing her to tilt her head to the side.

"Don't ya need to eat mo' often?" She asked in confusion, following me as I selected a nice looking piece of wall near the stage.

"I can make a nutrition bar last an entire week, and they're only this big." I answered, holding my hands about two inches apart. "They may be small, but scientists packed enough nutrients for three meals and also adding the taste of piss at the same time." I explained.

"Er... Still. How much does a 'Spartan' consider three meals?" She asked, blushing a little.

"Anywhere from a week to three." I answered. "I happen to absorb nutrients a little faster than my fellow Spartans." I think ODSTs have a bar a day, but I'm not entirely sure on that. Don't spend a lot of time with Hell jumpers.

I know that Spartans generally don't fuck with one, because an entire squad of them will give 'em payback. Usually in a physical sense.

I also think that's how a Spartan-III that went by the name of 'Bubba' died. Listed as MIA, but I know that's just bull... usually. John was listed as MIA for several years. Popped outta nowhere and blew up a Forerunner ship with a nuke several days later.

"Woah." Applejack said, before looking towards the stage as a brown mare with a grey mane stepped forward. She glanced uneasily at me and Barthou'mus, before clearing her throat.

"Fillies and Gentlecolts!" She started, before hesitantly glancing at me. I nodded and she continued. "As Mayor of Ponyville, it is my great pleasure to announce the beginning of the Summer Sun Celebration!" She declared, causing my eyebrow to rise a little.

_'If she's a public official, I wonder where the security is at...'_ Glancing around, I only saw three pegasi guards, and they were at the entrance.

"Jesus..." I breathed, but shook it off.

"In just a few moments, our town will witness the magic of the sunrise, and celebrate this; the longest day of the year! And now, it is my great honor to introduce to you the leader of our land..." She continued on, before Rarity tugged on a rope, having caught my attention because I went all paranoid like and looked for snipers. Instead of the great white bitch appearing, there was a blank space.

"Huh?!" Rarity called out, while uneasy muttering popped up everywhere. I clamored to my feet, pulling my DMR off of my back while Barthou'mus growled a little.

Turns out, at least a few of the civilians thought _we_ had something to do with the disappearance of their ruler.

"Everypony be quiet!" The mayor tried to calm them down, but something else happened instead.

From an open window, came a billowing cloud of purple smoke. My gut instantly told me to plug a grenade in it, but I decided to watch instead.

"Be ready for anything." I told Barthou'mus, who nodded and his energy sword burst to life, almost shearing off one of Twilight's ears. She didn't notice, because she was too busy staring at the cloud in shock and fear.

Out of the mist came what must've been Celestia's sister, from what she told me during our only interactions; a pitch black alicorn with similar plate armor to what the guards were wearing.

"Oh, all of my little subjects..." She said, her voice lowered but easily heard due to the total silence in the room. Glancing at Barthou'mus, I made him lower his arm with my hand as he went to prime his plasma grenade.

"Save it; I have a feeling you'll need it for something else." I muttered, keeping my eyes on the alicorn looking at us in interest.

"And who might you two be?" The alicorn asked with curiosity.

"Soldiers." Was all I said, the both of us disappearing from sight.

**[Outside]**

**"That was anti-climatic."** Reznov muttered.

"Would you rather the bitch fire on unarmed civilians so we could kill her?" I snarled a little. "Because if you say yes, I'm ripping your chip out and letting Konthou eat you."

**"I meant nothing by that!"** Reznov panicked a little; when I threatened someone, I _meant_ it.

"What's the plan, Mark?" Dune asked, having slipped out.

"You go home while we take care of what'sherface." I answered.

"She's Nightmare Moon, and I can take care of myself!" Dune retorted.

"I have to agree with Mark on this one, Dune." Dawn said, moving out of the way as Twilight raced towards the Library. I also noticed that Nightmare Moon's cloud form was racing towards the Everfree forest.

"But dad, I c-" She started to argue, and all three of us stamped down hard.

"No." We all said. She sighed and slowly nodded.

"That goes for you too, Dawn." I said as we started moving.

"Normally, I'd object." Dawn started. "But seeing as I'm in no position to take down an alicorn, I'll pass on joining your party." He shamelessly said.

"Smart man." I muttered, before looking at Konthou. "Hate to tell you this, but the way the forest is, you're not nearly small enough to sneak through it. If we needed a tank to go through, I'd say you can come, but as it is, we need a stealth approach." The colony moved the helmet down, and I patted one of its shoulders.

"You can stay behind and guard the town against invaders. Who knows, it may even be fun." I offered. Konthou nodded at me and lumbered after Dawn and Dune, while I turned to Barthou'mus.

"'S go." I said, bolting off after the cloud.

_"Watch out for the flying beavers, because their teeth are sharper than Old Earth beavers and they're fifty times as aggressive." -Master Chief Petty Officer Mark-078 to a squad of Marines, about to be dropped on a smash and grab operation in Covenant territory._


	15. Endless Night, Part 2

**Reviews:**

** : Know that feel, bro. Know that feel...**

**Guest: Nope. Didn't even know there was a movie until after I created him. Surprised that it took this long for someone to notice.**

**LexiconHuka:**  
**Mark:*goes for the Hail Mary catch!***

**garebare65: **  
**Mark: 'Twas one of my more hilarious jumps. When we got there, the Covies were already under attack by four foot wide flying beavers, so all we had to do was mop up.**

"Alright, where are we going?" I muttered to Reznov as we stood discreetly on the edge of the forest.

**"I would suggest following the path leading into the forest until you get to this castle of theirs."** Reznov said as a diamond popped up with the distance indicating that it was roughly 1,598 meters away from our current position. **"Very glad that Dawn had a map that showed where it was, or else that number would've been question marks."**

"That's a stroll, right there..." I muttered, before looking at Barthou'mus.

"How far do we have to go in?" He asked, wiping a few specks of dust off of his sword hilt.

"1,600 meters." I answered, cracking my fingers. "Let's get moving, I want to get there as soon as possible."

**"What are you going to do once you get there?"** Reznov asked as we started jogging along the path.

"Attempt to reason with her." I answered, DMR in hand. "If that fails, put a bullet in her face."

**"If it can even work."** Reznov commented as I kept running a few yards behind of Barthou'mus. **"Remember, that alicorn can turn into mist."**

"For every problem, there's a solution." I muttered. "If there isn't a solution, nuke it and hope for the best."

"Hold up!" Barthou'mus called out, fist raised. I skidded to a stop beside him, as he crouched down and looked at a set of tracks on the trail. He found six somewhat identical ones, and picked one at random.

"What is it?" I asked, flicking my night vision on to see better.

"Hoof tracks." He answered, slowly dragging a claw/finger through a print. "Unicorn, from the way it was pressed into the dirt."

"You sure?" I asked.

"Absolutely. When Lyra visited me in the clearing, she left the same imprints, more or less. These are a little different, due to not being Lyra's, but still heavy enough to be a unicorn." He answered.

"How do you know a normal one didn't make them? Or a pegasus?" I questioned as we followed the tracks.

**"Don't question the tracker. First rule of the jungle."** Reznov muttered.

"We're not in a jungle, first off." I muttered.

"Lyra explained that to me the second time she visited." Barthou'mus explained. "With an earth pony, the imprint would be an inch into the ground. With a pegasus, the imprint would barely be at three millimeters. Unicorns are about a centimeter." After a moment, he frowned. Well, frowned in the way a dude with mandibles could. "I would not know how deep that thing would leave for an imprint, but if I had to guess, it would be deeper than an earth pony."

**"Filing that down for future references."** Reznov muttered as we stumbled upon a somewhat placid looking manticore. We both froze, while it simply looked on impassively.

_'Dude looks high as fuck.'_ I thought.

"...Do we just walk around it?" I slowly asked, looking at Barthou'mus out of the corner of my eye.

"We'll attempt to." He answered, and so we did. The three of us were really surprised when we walked past without any trouble.

"I'm keeping an eye on our rear for a while." I said, glancing at my motion tracker.

_'Damn wildlife is screwing with it, but anything larger than me will appear on it.'_ I thought, noticing all of the little multicolored blips around us.

**"I can't sift out too much, or else we might miss something important."** Reznov told me as we continued following the tracks, albeit at a faster pace.

"Have you seen trees like this?" Barthou'mus asked about 300 meters later, our flashlights shining over everything.

"Not really." I answered, settling the twin lights on my helmet over an odd looking one. Damn thing was snarling at me, for some reason.

**"They have an odd energy emitting from them. Keep moving."** Reznov said, causing the two of us to continue.

"I hear a river!" Barthou'mus called out, and his jogging increased, so my speed increased to match his. "And... a voice?" He hesitated after a moment, confused.

"That must be a really loud voice..." I muttered. With Reznov aplifying my hearing a little, I could hear a voice that just screamed flaming homosexual.

**"..."** Reznov sighed.** "I give up trying to understand this planet..."** He said, defeated.

"It's alright Reznov, I stopped after I saw Ponyville." I replied. As we headed towards the voice, we heard whoever we were following talking to the creature.

"Whelp, found who we were following." I muttered to Barthou'mus as we hid from Twilight and the others. I didn't want to see any of them there, but I took the fact that Lyra and Dune weren't there as a good sign, considering that we didn't see any carcasses on the way over.

Rarity went on about how fashion was important to her audience, which consisted of a huge ass sea snake with half a mustache and hair and five ponies; Applejack, Twilight, Dash, Fluttershy, and Pinkie.

"What in the gods..." Barthou'mus muttered, staring directly at the flamboyant serpent. As we watched, Rarity cut off her tail and connected it somehow to the side of the dude's face, making him squeal in joy. I'm not shitting you. At all. Dude fucking _squealed_.

Then he allowed them to cross on his back.

"Shall we continue?" I muttered to my company.

"Let's. Invisibly." He said, as we crept past the serpent and into the calm water. While I crouched, the water only went up to my knees, so it wasn't that deep. Where we were crossing, anyway.

_"I'll learn this new body like the backside of my, what the fuck is that?" BVids on Twilight becoming human in Equestria Girls._

**Author's Note: The castle thing will be next chapter.**


	16. Endless Night, Part 3

**Reviews:**

**capniggershit: Ill fukkin rek u m8t, i swar on me mum.**

**LexiconHuka: Whelp, you figured out a chapter in the future of MiE...**

**spartan1735:**  
**Mark: Yep.**

** : Here.**

We kept up our pursuit of the group of ponies, and I saw Pinks wave to me. I nodded at her and held up a finger to where my lips were under my helmet, and she gave me a salute. When the other five looked to see who she was 'communicating' with, they saw nothing, since we were cloaked.

"Pinkie Pie, is there a time where you_ aren't_ random?" I heard Rainbow Dash asked.

"Yep!" Pinkie chirped in response, bouncing off. At that moment, Twilight started falling off of a cliff that she somehow didn't notice. Dash bit down on her tail and dragged her back.

"What is it with you and falling off cliffs today?" She asked with a grin as we finally (If we really wanted to, we would've caught up when we noticed them.) stepped up next to them, though still invisible.

"How're we gonna get across now?" Applejack voiced out, while I observed the decaying bridge.

-How heavy would an earth pony be?- I messaged Barthou'mus while Dash flew down to reattatch the bridge on the other side.

-Roughly four hundred pounds. I would be able to cross, barely.- He answered. I saw Pinks using logic on the current situation, and frowned up at me. She was lucky the others were occupied with waiting for Dash, or else we would've caused a fright.

"You can't cross over..." She muttered once I crouched down for her.

"Barthou'mus can, but barely. He's about the same weight as you." I answered.

**"As Mark has told others before; he has two armor abilities. He'll be able to cross."** Reznov added.

"Ohh! Can it make you weigh less?" She guessed. I had to shake my head, but chuckled anyway.

"Something like that." I replied, standing up.

"What's taking so long?!" Twilight shouted over at Dash, who still hasn't returned. I frowned, letting my cloak turn off to recharge. They all let out a yelp of surprise, save for Pinkie.

"She's talking to some ponies on the other side in tacky getup." I answered, zooming in on them. I narrowed my eyes, drew my DMR, and aimed down the scope.

"What're you do-?" Pinks asked right before I squeezed the trigger three times, sending a bullet into all three of the 'ponies' that Dash was conversing with. They erupted into smoke, and she shook her head before finishing the repairs to the bridge.

"I don't trust something that isn't really there." I calmly said as they all gaped at me. "Spartans and Elites have a similar device in their armor that allows them to recreate themselves as a hologram for a short time. What I saw was completely amatur compared to our holograms."

"Why do you say that?" Twilight asked in confusion, getting over the shock of me shooting in the same direction as Dash.

"The hooves were shimmering, like smoke. I'm surprised Dash didn't notice." I answered.

"I'd never leave my friends hanging!" She exclaimed, before floating over to me.

"What were you talking about to them?" I muttered so she wouldn't have to embarrase herself.

"They wanted me to 'join the Shadowbolts'. The 'best fliers in the Everfree'." She muttered back as the others started going over the bridge. When the rest of them (Dash stayed behind) crossed and turned to look at us, Barthou'mus eased himself onto the wooden planks and started across.

"Your turn, big guy!" Dash said, lightly slapping a shoulder. I sighed,_ lightly_ stepped on the first plank and caused it to disintegrate under my leg's weight.

"This bridge ain't gonna hold me." I told her, while Twilight's horn flared up. I felt a tingling sensation run over my body, but nothing else.

"Wait here, I'll find another way across!" Dash said, before I shook my head.

"No need." I said, right before stepping over the edge and plummeting through the smoke in a thousand foot drop.

"NO!" Six pairs of voices yelled.

**"Activating."** Reznov said as twin jets of fire exploded from my jetpack, and I quickly halted my descent. **"Thirty seconds remaining."**

"More than enough time." I said, kicking the thrusters up and causing me to rise forth from the fog.

"Woah..." Dash said in awe as I flew my heavy ass towards the other side, something Johnson said about John and I echoing in my head.

_"For a pair of bricks, they flew pretty good."_

**"Five seconds."** Reznov said, right before my armored feet touched the path they were standing on. I instinctively went into a crouch, before grinning at their (besides Barthou'mus) shocked faces.

"Touchdown for this brick." I said, standing straight and motioning forward. "Let's go get whatever it is that you came here for." We walked for about five steps before Twilight fell into step next to me.

"We came here for the Elements of Harmony." Twilight said, and then went into a small rant about what they did.

-They sound like weapons to me.- I messaged Barthou'mus, who nodded back.

"Hey!" Pinks suddenly shouted, causing all of us to look at her. "Why isn't Konthou here?" She asked me.

"We required speed and stealth to get here, and unfortunately, Konthou has neither." Reznov explained. "We left him with Red Dawn, Sand Dune, and Lyra. If anything attempts to attack the town, it will be turned into a puddle of radioactive goo from Konthou's Fuel Rod Cannon."

"That sounds absolutely brutish!" Rarity exclaimed. I snorted and grit my teeth, but held my tongue at what real Brutes would do. At this point, we were inside the castle proper and Twilight was levitating down five round chunks of stone that had images carved into them.

"Those are the Elements?" I asked, before scoffing inside my head.

**"They're more deadly if you fire them out of a 16th century cannon."** Reznov muttered, much to my amusement.

"There's only five!" Pinkie exclaimed, showing off her superior counting. I'm not calling her stupid or anything, but it was clear that there was only five stones.

Twilight went on about how a spark would reveal the sixth element, and we left to give her some peace.

"So, how can you fly?" Dash asked as we loitered around.

"My jetpack burns a certain type of fuel (that recharges automatically) that has enough thrust to push my half ton suit off of the ground, or halt myself from falling." To my surprise, she seemed eager to learn more. So, with the slight help from Reznov, I explained the in depth and unclassified mechanics of a modern jetpack.

"AHH!" Twilight suddenly screamed, and I kicked open the door with half a ton of suit backing me up. When I saw Twilight, it was too late as she disappeared in a flash of light.

"She's in the tower!" Barthou'mus yelled, pointing at the last fully standing tower of the castle, where there was a light show going on.

"Let's go!" The mares yelled, and ran off.

"Go with them." I told Barthou'mus, plugging a bullet into the nearest window and using my jetpack to go up that way. I burst through a window at the top just as my jetpack quit, needing to recharge. Which meant that I almost landed on Nightmare Moon as I rolled onto my feet, DMR already out and aimed at her.

"Stand the fuck down." I snarled. She quickly recovered from her surprise, and glared right back at me.

"Why should I?!" She challenged me. "I'm in control of the night! Even Celestia couldn't stop me!"

"You say you want these ponies to cherish your night, right?" I questioned, not letting my grip up. She nodded, and I started laughing.

"What is the meaning of this?!" She questioned.

"If you want people to like the night, you're taking the wrong approach to this." I said. "There's a planet in my home world's solar system, Pluto **(In this, it is a planet again)**, and it never gets light. The reason for this is because the sun is too goddamn far away for it to reach." Then I put up a diagram of a random planet. I'm sad to say that I've seen this happen once.

"If you look at this, you'll see what'll happen due to you stopping the rotation of this planet." I said as the planet stopped rotating completely. Curiosity getting the better of her, she slowly came over and looked closely. As she watched, one side of the planet turned into a scorching hot desert while the other half turned into an eternal tundra, while a small sliver of the planet stayed at a cool temperature, but was able to hold life.

"Take this as the planet we're on right now." I explained. "First will come lowered temperatures here, while the other side starts rising in temperature. Soon, the water will either freeze solid or evaporate, crops will not be able to grow, and lives will perish."

She looked horrified, and backed away.

"How do I know that you aren't just lying to me?!" She accused, and I sighed.

"Sorry about this, then." I muttered, and stuck her over the head with the butt of my DMR before she could react. Nightmare Moon hit the ground, out cold.

"Do your stuff, she's knocked out." I said, before sitting down to clean off my gear. As I was doing this, the others finally caught up and the sixth brick appeared, causing them all to explode and send shards towards the ponies. When the bright light went away, I noticed that there was a rainbow right on top of us, and I couldn't get away in time.

I was knocked out from the pain that enveloped my body, which meant that it was _really_ bad since I could tolerate having an arm chopped off and plasma burns all over my body.

**Author's Note: Oh noes!**


	17. New Body, Old Rules

**Reviews:**

**lazyfucker: How would that even fucking work?**

**ALT F4:**  
**Reznov: Trying my damnest to not pay attention to it. Helps in the short run.**

**LexiconHuka:**  
**Mark: I was hit by a gay pride parade!**

"...Mark?" Barthou'mus' voice dragged me into a world of discomfort.

"Ugh... Shut off the sun..." I groaned, squeezing my eyes shut as I wondered why my sight was different. Eh, it was probably because of the rainbow that stuck me.

"It's not that bright out." Barthou'mus said, helping me to my feet. I wobbled a little, but a quick spread of my arms stablized me.

"Feels like it..." I muttered, dropping my arms to my sides and started walking forward.

_'Why is it so fucking hard to walk?'_ I thought to myself as I wobbled along, and realized something else. _'...And when did I shrink? I was only a head shorter than Blarg-Tard, but now I'm barely at his chest!'_

**"Are you feeling alright, Mark?"** Reznov asked me, making me frown.

"What the hell happened to us? The last thing I remember was taking a rainbow of all things to the face, and now it's bloody hard to walk." I questioned, scowling a little.

**"The rainbow... affected you."** Reznov finally said, causing me to stop.

"Well, what the hell happened?" I asked.

"It turned you into a pony." A smug looking Celestia said, a smaller version (and lighter) of Nightmare Moon standing next to her with a curious expression on her face.

**"She's not kidding, Mark."** Reznov said before I could ask. I was glad that my helmet hid my scowl.

"Change me back." I said to Celestia, my calm voice masking my true emotions.

"Why should I?" She asked, her smug face not lowering.

"Because it would be the right goddamn thing to do." I spat out.

"Well, even if I _wanted_ to, I can't." She said after a moment, her voice laced with a hint of smugness, and I could tell there was also glee. Glee at a 'monster' being forced to cope with a new body. Glee at the fact that she thought that she could lie to a Spartan, who were trained to be interrogators as well as hiding information at the same time. And thus my mind completely snapped at her arrogance.

_"...Mark..."_ A voice called out, extremely hazy with my mind forcing everything to exit. There was nothing there, only a void of darkness that swallowed everything.

**"STAND THE FUCK DOWN SPARTAN! RIGHT THE FUCK NOW!"** Reznov's voice shot through the darkness, forcing me back into reality. I was on top of a sprawled Celestia, my knife not even a centimeter away from her left eye. I knew that if she blinked, she'd cut her eyelids. And she knew it, too. I felt something strike me, but Reznov had half of my armor locked up, so I didn't move a bit, even if whatever hit me could possibly sway my armor. Even my shielding didn't react; it stayed at 100%.

**"Put your knife away, get off of her, and leave this room."** Reznov ordered, unlocking me so I could carry out the orders. I emotionlessly slid my weapon into its sheath, got off of her (not without thinking of hitting her while she was down, mind you), and walked past the seven ponies that were glaring at me with the intensity of a thousand suns.

"Before you begin yelling at me, just know that my mind fucking _snapped_, so I wasn't in control of what I did." I told Reznov while going down the stairs. A few of them cracked and chipped under my weight, but didn't break.

"You're a goddamn Spartan. I'm ashamed of you for letting your emotions getting the better of you, even for a short time." Reznov spat. My left eye twitched dangerously.

"And YOU have no fucking emotions of your own." I spat back, stopping completely. "When we did that op on the Grunt homeworld, who told me to _burn all of the Uggnoy_? Without a FUCKING GODDAMN SENSE OF HONOR?!" I couldn't help it and just got pissed again. "You say that you're ashamed of me?! Sometimes I fucking regret accepting YOUR FUCKING CHIP!" With that, I ripped him out of my suit and tossed him behind me.

Let Barthou'mus pick him up; I knew he was following me.

Several hours and a lot of dead animals later, Ponyville saw a fuming me stomp into the outskirts, heading directly to Dawn's house. Making my way into his house, I went straight into his basement and dropped onto the matress in the corner.

"Just... Don't try to consol me right now, Barthou'mus." I sighed, staring up at the ceiling.

"I'm here to give Reznov back to you." The Elite replied without emotion.

"Keep him for a while and see if you two can't figure out a way into UNSC territory." I grunted. "I don't want to deal with him for at least a day."

"What happens if we do?" Barthou'mus asked, heading towards the stairs.

"Tell me before you leave." I sighed. "And when you get back, tell everyone except Chief that I'm 'MIA'." Sliding up until I was sitting (it felt somewhat awkward), I looked at him. "Him of all people needs to know what really happened."

"You're just giving up?" Barthou'mus asked, narrowing his eyes.

"Never give up... Just adapting. Changing. I'm a Spartan through and through, but I won't continue to be one if I go back. Likely, they'll 'decommission' me as mercy." I explained, looking at a spot on the wall.

"What will your family think?" Barthou'mus asked, and I knew Reznov winced, even if I didn't care.

"You don't know much about original Spartans, do you?" I mused, before chuckling darkly. "It doesn't matter what they think, not anymore."

"...I'm sorry for your loss." He said as he caught on.

"Don't be." I muttered, before ignoring him and browsing through all of the music I had in my hard drive. Sighing once more, I selected some Old Earth music and fell asleep to Skillet's _Monster_.

**[The next morning]**

"...Are you sure we should be waking him up?" A voice called out, dragging me awake. After a moment of recalling everything that happened the previous day, I switched off the music, which happened to be _This is War_, by 30 Seconds to Mars.

"Whether you wanted to or not, you did..." I groaned, pushing myself up into a sitting position. Dune squeaked a little and backed up, while Lyra looked at me with pity. "And I don't want your pity, it feels wrong." I told her, causing her to blush and look away.

"Sorry..." She muttered, before clearing her throat. "How do you feel?"

"Like I got turned into a pony, just found out that I can't go back to my own species, and the one pony who could turn me back hates me because of what I am." I deadpanned, causing Lyra to look away with a blush adorning her muzzle.

"Why couldn't you go back to the other humans?" Dune innocently asked, tilting her head to the side.

"Two reasons, one of which I didn't tell Reznov." I replied. "One, so they won't kill me as a 'mercy', and the other is to protect you all." I could tell that they were confused at both, but moreso at the latter.

"What do you mean by 'protect'?" Lyra asked.

"Resources and magic." I answered. "Even though I'm sure they won't let this happen, the human race is overly zealous at times. Some of the more morally deprived humans, especially ONI, would attempt to 'harvest' magic from you unicorns, usually with serious consequences." They winced, but nodded at my logic.

"Are you up to coming to breakfast?" Dune asked, causing me to get to my feet.

"Might as well." I grunted, before noticing that I had no idea what species of pony I was. I asked them as I followed them upstairs.

"You're an earth pony." Dune informed me, causing me to nod a little. "With your prostetic arm still attached, by the way."

"Hate to say I would be uncomfortable without it." I muttered to myself. We came out into the sunny interior of the house, causing me to grumble a little as we headed towards the kitchen.

"What do you want to do today?" Lyra asked the two of us.

"Murder a certain smug alicorn." I grumbled under my breath. Either she heard me and chose to ignore it or she didn't.

"We could go to Sugarcube Corner?" Dune offered. "Might be something to cheer you up."

"If it's sugary, I can't eat it." I deadpanned.

"Right..." She muttered as we walked into the kitchen. "Are you hungry, though?" She asked as I stood (still on my legs. I may be a pony but I'm a goddamn human at heart) at the table.

"Ate four days ago." I answered. "Good for another three days."

"Humans only eat once a week?" Lyra asked, tilting her head as a notebook suddenly appeared next to her, alongside a quill and inkwell.

"Civilians eat three times a day." I answered. "Marines eat like civilians, while ODSTs eat once a day. Spartans eat once every week to three weeks, depending on the Spartan." I explained.

"And you eat once a week?" Lyra continued, writing down notes. Frankly, I felt like I was being passively interrogated, but I didn't mind too much.

"Yea." I answered. "Me and the Chief do, since we had more active lifestyles than most other Spartans."

"What do you mean by that?" Dawn asked.

"Let's just say the only person who has a technical higher kill count through everything the Covenant employs is Admiral Cole. He took down an entire bloody fleet of the Covenant bastards at Psi Serpentis completely alone." I explained. "Of course, nobody really knows how many Noble Six took down... God rest her soul." I added after a moment, pressing a...hoof... against my head as I sighed.

"Who was Noble Six?" Lyra asked.

"A damn good Spartan-III." I answered. "Couldn't even pin a name on her, she just went by Lone Wolf before joining Noble Team."

"How well did you know her?" Dawn asked. I shrugged.

"Might as well ask you how well you know somebody you only see for as long as you're deployed with his or her squad." I answered. "When Noble Team got Six, I was brought out of sleep to help them for some reason. One of two Spartans to make it off of Reach before it got totally glassed, and one of two remaining Spartan-IIs."

"What do you mean by 'brought out of sleep'?" Lyra asked. "Do humans hibernate?"

"Not in the least." I answered. "I was brought out of suspended animation from being completly frozen as a way to conserve resources on the Pillar of Autumn, the ship I left Reach on."

"How did you end up in this suspended animation?" Dawn asked. "Magic?"

"That's classified." I said, grinning a little. "Not really. I was put into cyrosleep through the use of technology. Whenever a ship goes into slipspace, all nonessential personnel are put into these tubes to be frozen until arrival at their destination. When in cyrosleep, a person doesn't need to eat, drink, or breathe, so you could chuck one into space, with proper equipment still attached to the pod, and pick him up about a million years later. Pop that sucker open and it'll be as if he simply took a nap." I explained.

"Sounds too much like magic..." Dawn muttered, but nodded. "Anyway, are you sure you don't want something to eat?"

"I'm sure." I said with a nod. "I'm going out for a walk, so I'll see you later." I gave a small salute (he was a Commander, after all) and left. Before I opened the door, I glanced back at my ass to see if I had a tail, and saw a three inch long black tail staring right back at me.

"Fucking..." I sighed, but was somewhat glad. At least I kept my natural hair color, if what these ponies and their tail/mane combinations went by.

_'Let's get this over with.'_ I thought, before pushing the door open and stepping outside into the sunny weather.

_'What is it that you want to know about John?' Mark upon being interrogated._  
_'Would you say that he has no humanity left in him?' Interrogator._  
_'Only as much as I do.' Mark. 'And even though you all think otherwise, that's a lot of fucking humanity left.'_


End file.
